3 things about Robert Aldrich’s AUTUMN LEAVES

Posted on September 29, 2014 by robchristopher

Autumn Leaves [1956]

1. “Am I a neurotic need?”
2. She takes off her apron and unconsciously wraps it around the plate she was drying. She then carries the bundle around the room.
3. Chicken salad, no bread.

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3 things about Robert Wise’s THE DESERT RATS

Posted on September 27, 2014 by robchristopher

The Desert Rats [1953]

1. In The Desert Fox, James Mason doesn’t use a German accent. Here he does. And though it sounds right somehow it’s less effective.
2. “I made my usual mistake of being in a pub the day war was declared.”
3. From the desert, the sound of bagpipes.

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The big three.

Posted on September 25, 2014 by robchristopher
  1. The “substance” of the film, i.e. the stuff of which it’s made: at moments it feels almost contemporary, at other moments it’s archaic. But the film itself never “talks” about this.
  2. Central relationship: R and D live together, “work” together, and yet don’t really communicate, never truly connect. What they do have to “say” to each other is mostly between the lines.
  3. The film within the film: R thinks he’s making a profound, articulate statement; in reality he doesn’t really know what he’s doing, and isn’t being skillful about it. It isn’t as profound as he thinks it is.
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3 things about Hong Khaou’s LILTING

Posted on September 25, 2014 by robchristopher

Lilting [2014]

1. Crying. Snotty beard.
2. He plucks a hair from Kai’s nipple, puts it in his mouth.
3. She sits alone at the table, listening to him move around upstairs. She passes a hand across her forehead.

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3 things about Ranald MacDougall’s QUEEN BEE

Posted on September 24, 2014 by robchristopher

Queen Bee [1955]

1. Telephone cord as lasso. Or noose.
2. “I don’t like the light. Put it out.”
He snarls, “I know what you like and don’t like!”
3. Cold cream all over the mirror. Shades of Diane Ladd in Wild at Heart.

3 other things.

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3 things about Terry Gilliam’s THE ZERO THEOREM

Posted on September 23, 2014 by robchristopher

The Zero Theorem [2013]

1. He matches the drapes.
2. A vault of vials.
3. The head of Christ is a surveillance camera.

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3 things about Vincent Sherman’s HARRIET CRAIG

Posted on September 22, 2014 by robchristopher

Harriet Craig [1950]

1. While talking on the phone, she presents her feet to Clare so that she can put her shoes on for her.
2. “Yes, I know you now. I don’t like you.”
3.  A severe hairstyle, the braids tightly pinioned to her scalp.

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3 things about Werner Herzog’s FITZCARRALDO

Posted on September 20, 2014 by robchristopher

Fitzcarraldo [1982]

1. Champagne for the horses.
2. He unties the captain. “Now we really need some Italian opera. Don’t you agree?”
3. The scenery, stowed in various boats and canoes, floats down the river.

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A 3 Things anniversary.

Posted on September 20, 2014 by robchristopher

Seven years ago today I wrote my very first 3 Things entry. Several hundred (or thousand?) movies later, the project is still going strong. Will my dreamed-of book every materialize? (Rhetorical question.)

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On feedback and criticism.

Posted on September 19, 2014 by robchristopher

The feedback that every filmmaker hates and yet needs to hear goes something like this: “Your movie is wonderful! But … what if you rethought the whole project, took a completely different tack and overhauled it?”

Whether you (reluctantly) agree or (violently) disagree with it, criticism can be immensely valuable. Why? Exactly because it forces you to justify your choices and truly pay attention to that little Edward G. Robinson in your gut.

Having gotten a fair share of it about Pause of the Clock so far, that’s just what I’m trying to do.

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