tell us about the last Film you saw

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

VICTIM

'A prominent lawyer goes after a blackmailer who threatens gay men with exposure (homosexual acts still being illegal). But he's gay himself...'

Starring the great DIRK BOGARDE.

1961



on M's list.

 

[nicky wire's legs]

yay, i just found out that i have a portable dvd player! i bought it a couple of years ago and for some reason because i hadnt used it for so long i had thought it was broken but no, it works just fine! to the video store!

ooh, you know what this means?! i can now take that money that i was going to use to buy a dvd player and spend it on whatever i want! what should i buy? buckets full of marzipan?!

 

[Anonymous]

Both excellent

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

rifke, so many thanks for mentioning the werner herzog film, what a treasure, watched it yesterday on utube. first thing that struck me was that the incorrigible krautrockers of popol vuh wrote parts of the soundtrack, what a beginning, first the yodeling of the cowherds and then popol vuh's hypnotizing music mixing with images of the bavarian landscape. and what a great idea to hypnotize (or maybe 'get stoned'??) the actors, makes the acting so primitive and genuine at the same time. the pretty byronesque factory owner is something to look at especially in his coat, i agree.
mistakenly, i had thought this to be a film based on the romantic fairy tale "the cold heart/heart of stone" by wilhem hauff from the early 19th century in which "coal-marmot" peter invokes a forest spirit, the glass-imp, to grant him three wishes, one of them being a glass factory and enough money to run it. i quickly stood corrected about my assumption, but still think that the movie is kind of a sequel to the fairy tale namely telling the story of the time after "peter's" death pointing at germany's historical direction leading to two world wars, the "original sin" thus being peter selling his heart for profit in the fairy tale.
i'm still very excited about the movie.
i guess you know about the cooperation between werner herzog, softly-spoken and deeply reflective, and yelling madman klaus kinski in films like aguirre or fitzcarraldo. it's amazing how these two very opposing characters did not kill each other on the set but were able to generate the most mesmerizing art nonetheless. i'm glad they both did not end up in politics though. in the interview herzog says that the natives kindly inquired after the filming was done whether they should kill kinski for him, but herzog politely declined the friendly offer as he needed kinski for later movies

what a mad man ! he's great in WOYZECK ... you must see.

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

speaking of mad men... ALBERT FINNEY plays one here...

 

[nicky wire's legs]

rifke, so many thanks for mentioning the werner herzog film, what a treasure, watched it yesterday on utube. first thing that struck me was that the incorrigible krautrockers of popol vuh wrote parts of the soundtrack, what a beginning, first the yodeling of the cowherds and then popol vuh's hypnotizing music mixing with images of the bavarian landscape. and what a great idea to hypnotize (or maybe 'get stoned'??) the actors, makes the acting so primitive and genuine at the same time. the pretty byronesque factory owner is something to look at especially in his coat, i agree.
mistakenly, i had thought this to be a film based on the romantic fairy tale "the cold heart/heart of stone" by wilhem hauff from the early 19th century in which "coal-marmot" peter invokes a forest spirit, the glass-imp, to grant him three wishes, one of them being a glass factory and enough money to run it. i quickly stood corrected about my assumption, but still think that the movie is kind of a sequel to the fairy tale namely telling the story of the time after "peter's" death pointing at germany's historical direction leading to two world wars, the "original sin" thus being peter selling his heart for profit in the fairy tale.
i'm still very excited about the movie.
i guess you know about the cooperation between werner herzog, softly-spoken and deeply reflective, and yelling madman klaus kinski in films like aguirre or fitzcarraldo. it's amazing how these two very opposing characters did not kill each other on the set but were able to generate the most mesmerizing art nonetheless. i'm glad they both did not end up in politics though. in the interview herzog says that the natives kindly inquired after the filming was done whether they should kill kinski for him, but herzog politely declined the friendly offer as he needed kinski for later movies

oh im so glad you watched it and liked it! this is highly novel as my movie recommendations are generally never well received!
god, i love that movie so much, it is definitely in my top five. there are just so many great scenes. of course my favourite have to do with the "pretty byronesque factory owner"! (i looked him up to see if there were any other movies with him, but no dice. such a shame. i just want one more role to ogle him in, is that so much to ask?! ). i dont care what anyone says, that was one of the most moving performances i've ever seen, made all the more so because of the fact that his longing, his quest, his life force, was so personal, the importance of which was not able to be conveyed or understood by a casual observer; the fact that it wasnt some universal theme, like saving humanity, or even romantic love, but ruby glass (of which, one notes, he already has plenty). it strikes me as very human. it reminds me of this time when i was little and i wanted this art easel for christmas, and i would get so worked up about it that i would ask my mom constantly throughout the day, for weeks before christmas, whether i was going to get it or not. it's not that i wanted it so badly (because, to be sure, once i got it i probably used it all of once), but that i felt it was in the grand order of things that i should get it, that not only would it be nice for me to receive it, but that it would also be nice for someone to be able to give it to me, and that if i didnt get it, than surely everything was not right in the universe. so it was this confirmation that all was right in the universe that i was after that caused me to pester everyone non-stop with "am i getting an art easel?! am i getting an art easel?!" until finally my mom yelled at me "YES! you're getting a damn art easel!" (and oh how upset and beside myself i was that she had it in her to ruin the surprise and, by extension, christmas, the weak-willed woman). so i understand his obsession well. probably my favourite scene was the one--oh i dont know how to describe it--where he's at the table with his guest who has been telling him stories about the ruby glass or whatever, and he makes the announcement that hes going to have the glass thrown into the lake, and gives instructions to have the couch taken back to the ruby glass makers widow with compensation and for them to tell her that he doesnt wish for the ruby glass maker to be in hell but to be surrounded by angels (or something like that). in my opinion, that's his defining moment in the film, the moment when he relinquishes his quest for the ruby glass but at the same time accepts the longing and his lost vitality as a permanent part of him. anyway! i dont know that fairy tale you mention, but i wouldnt be surprised if herzog was influenced by it, especially it its part of german cultural consciousness. apparently the prophet in the movie, hias, was an actual person and the prophesies spoken in the movie were actual prophecies he made. i like the music by popul vuh too, it was perfect for the film!
also, klaus kinski! he's incredible! would you believe i only watched him in anything for the first time a couple of days ago? fitzcarraldo, with which i was also extremely impressed (especially by the very moving end scene. as a director werner herzog is quite a revelation). i look forward to seeing him in more things. next up, aguirre, wrath of god, and woyzseck! i love that interview with him, do you know he's exactly the caricature of what us non-germans picture germans to be like? so fantastic! and oh, he is magnificent when he loses his shit (wish i could understand what he was saying!). as you probably know werner herzog has a documentary about his relationship with klaus kinski called "my best fiend" or "mein liebster feind". im going to see if i can find it!
now, as gerrit would say, cheers lanterns!

 

[nicky wire's legs]

speaking of mad men... ALBERT FINNEY plays one here...

looks good, i may watch it later!

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

yes, he is great. according to his daughters and many others he was a real egomaniac shithouse to work or live with, but i can't help enjoy watching him, so full of energy. i am glad he did not end up in politics

politician? I don't know German, wasn't he claiming to be Jesus Christ here? ...

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

looks good, i may watch it later!

it's a strange one. But I do recommend VICTIM which I posted a page back. Post #6334

I like this one, though the film had a great story to fall back on, thanks to Charlotte Brontë. Orson Welles his dialogue is great, but his delivery could be a bit much at times. There's a wonderful brooding overcast that veils the film which I of course enjoyed. Though my favorite part was Jane's childhood scenes which were over too quickly as the film moved swiftly on. (the sound drops out a little just in the opening titles)

JANE EYRE 1943

unfortunately link has been pulled, for copy right reasons.

Around 18:05.. M used a still of the hands on the back cover of 'Hold On To Your Friends'

In an interview to Q Magazine April 1994 Morrissey answered the question "Are you moved to tears very easily?" with the answer "Yes, very, very easily. As a very dull example... the film Jane Eyre I sat through by accident a couple of years ago and was shocked that the floodgates opened. I'm extremely sensitive to art and I'm not ashamed to say that Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights or The Well Of Loneliness stir within me very powerful passions, but that doesn't mean that I'm an ineffectual six-stone weakling and the suggestion irks me constantly."

 

[Quando quando quando]

it's a strange one. But I do recommend VICTIM which I posted a page back. Post #6334

I like this one, though the film had a great story to fall back on, thanks to Charlotte Brontë. Orson Welles his dialogue is great, but his delivery could be a bit much at times. There's a wonderful brooding overcast that veils the film which I of course enjoyed. Though my favorite part was Jane's childhood scenes which were over too quickly as the film moved swiftly on. (the sound drops out a little just in the opening titles)

JANE EYRE 1943



Around 18:05.. M used a still of the hands on the back cover of 'Hold On To Your Friends'

In an interview to Q Magazine April 1994 Morrissey answered the question "Are you moved to tears very easily?" with the answer "Yes, very, very easily. As a very dull example... the film Jane Eyre I sat through by accident a couple of years ago and was shocked that the floodgates opened. I'm extremely sensitive to art and I'm not ashamed to say that Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights or The Well Of Loneliness stir within me very powerful passions, but that doesn't mean that I'm an ineffectual six-stone weakling and the suggestion irks me constantly."

Great movie and story about Moz!
Again, thanks for sharing KS!

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

partly, one perspective of many, the "unofficial jesus christ", describing a police hunt for the same. five years earlier peter handke's "offending the audience" had first been performed in which the audience is insulted among other things as warmongers and a subspecies. there is a certain theory and philosophy behind this sort of theater performance, mainly to create some immediacy and the refusal to allow theatre to be a way of escapism e.g. from feelings of guilt, and politics has always served the ugly as a show stage, i can't remember who said that, and as i am very tired today, i can only hope that this makes some sense at all, goodnight

thanks the 60's/70's what a strange climate... when people actually did interesting things.

 

[nicky wire's legs]

a very mesmerizing, or as gerrit would say, a f***ing great movie (sry gerrit, i couldnt resist), i was and still am profoundly touched by it. i can understand that stefan güttler's performance affected you deeply, seems that it was indeed his one and only film appearance ever. i hope he survived the hypnosis or whatever kind of treatment. the way he looked at and touched the ruby crystal glass at the beginning of the film, as if it was his own heart, fragile and doomed, is without equal. my favorite scene, besides the beautiful yodeling and popol vuh introduction, is the one right after the one that you've described, when the glass foundry workers are carrying the glasses on their backs hanging at these wooden backpacks like little red bells, in itself an aesthetic image to be cherished, but also so very deep in its sense of foreboding to what the hiasl has prophesized namely destruction on a grand scale, the workers becoming the soldiers carrying their guns on their backs marching into their deaths, and you see i cannot help but seeing the historical implications of this movie. and why do they march throwing away their own heart's blood? they follow the seducer in a hypnotized state of mind, collective dementia taking its toll

a couple of years back, when i was in vienna visiting the sigmund freud haus, i found this interesting book in the museum's shop called "the cold heart - about the power of money and the loss of empathy" examining the hauff fairy tale as an early expression of how capitalism in its swaddling clothes and our today's consumer culture destroy human feelings, very dickensian but also ringing true

im going to have to investigate this hauff fairy tale! it sounds very interesting.

oh lanterns that is a brilliant comparison of the glass foundry workers with the glass on their backs and soldiers carrying guns. i would never have thought of that myself, although i did pick up on the historical implications, as you say, of the prophecies. you are just too good at analyzing things. what did you make of the last seemingly disconnected scene of the people on the island setting off to discover if the earth is flat? i really liked the written text at the end of the movie, thought that was very poetic.

yes, a f***ing great movie, indeed

 

[nicky wire's legs]

politician? I don't know German, wasn't he claiming to be Jesus Christ here? ...

oh god, i love him so much. he can still be my new favourite person even if he was pretty despicable right (just found out about his daughters claims of molestation, which really kinda sucks...)? i mean, i dont have to base my favourite people on ethical grounds, do i? i mean, he's f***ing brilliant. and i love his nose. and his intensity. and volitality. oh! and his teeth! and so on.

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

oh god, i love him so much. he can still be my new favourite person even if he was pretty despicable right (just found out about his daughters claims of molestation, which really kinda sucks...)? i mean, i dont have to base my favourite people on ethical grounds, do i? i mean, he's f***ing brilliant. and i love his nose. and his intensity. and volitality. oh! and his teeth! and so on.

and he sings too !

 

[nicky wire's legs]

ah, so he does! but, ahem, why is he singing bertolt brecht?

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

ah, so he does! but, ahem, why is he singing bertolt brecht?

because he didn't know any Smiths songs. No, I don't know, but why do you ask? should he not be?



And the sky that same evening, grew dark as smoke
And its stars through the night, kept the brightness still soaring
But it quickly grew clear when dawn now broke
To see that she got one further morning

Once her pallid trunk had rotted beyond repair
It happened quite slowly that she gently slipped from God's thoughts
First with her face, then her hands, right at the last with her hair
Leaving those corpse-choked rivers just one more corpse

 

[nicky wire's legs]

because he didn't know any Smiths songs. No, I don't know, but why do you ask? should he not be?



And the sky that same evening, grew dark as smoke
And its stars through the night, kept the brightness still soaring
But it quickly grew clear when dawn now broke
To see that she got one further morning

Once her pallid trunk had rotted beyond repair
It happened quite slowly that she gently slipped from God's thoughts
First with her face, then her hands, right at the last with her hair
Leaving those corpse-choked rivers just one more corpse

no i was just wondering what it was for. was a bit confused. was he a singer too or was this just a one off thing? also your laughing smilie confused me, i thought maybe it was a joke.

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

no i was just wondering what it was for. was a bit confused. was he a singer too or was this just a one off thing? also your laughing smilie confused me, i thought maybe it was a joke.

thought it was amusing. Actors should sing if they want, just find it interesting when they do make records. Though I'm not sure if this was released as a record or just recorded for some t.v. or radio broadcast.

 

[Rex Reed]

I just watched New York Doll on amazon. Anyone that is interested has probably seen it but I just wanted to mention it's available. Arthur Kane reminds me of a friend of mine who also happens to be a bassist, and has that same painfully lost look in his eyes. He must have been an important part of the chemistry of the Dolls being sort of quiet and down to earth because David Johansen and Johnny Thunders were probably not ever easy people to deal with. And musically I think he helped hold things together. I love Johnny Thunders' guitar but it's kind of erratic and definitely benefits from a solid foundation.
The film is sad but it's also very nice to see the Dolls' reunion. Thanks to Morrissey for making that happen. Things might have gone a different way but for Arthur to see his wish come true with the band reforming for a huge show in London was close to perfect.

 

[Anonymous]