As I've undoubtedly already mentioned at some point, the once-venerable institution of snuggling up for an evening spent watching one or two feature-length movies has been relegated to blue-moon status chez Gekko. It's still unclear exactly why, but among the contributing factors are surely the following: the lack of movie-length contiguous blocks of disposable time; the ascendence of high-quality tv drama series (and their availability for binge-consumption); a dreary dearth of compelling new film content; me just having more of a life than I used to (okay, just kidding).
The exception to prove this rule occurred over the weekend, as I polished off the following:
Under the Skin
Based on the book by Michel Faber, which I read and quite enjoyed a few years back during a sojourn in Dublin (as I recall, it provided some welcome distraction during the write-up of my PhD thesis). Despite that, I couldn't really get into the movie. Scarlett Johansen was excellent, but the interpretation (which, from memory, took considerable liberties with the original) was just too bleak and arty for my taste.
Wolf Creek 2
A mildly entertaining second outing for John Jarrett's memorable slasher from down under, Mick Taylor, who continues to subvert every cherished outback stereotype. But this one descends into straightahead torture-porn fare, and ultimately doesn't really add anything to the original.
The Man From Earth
Interesting low-budget sci-fi flick from a few years back. The premise is of a university lecturer who, at his farewall get-together before he leaves town, confesses to a group of his friends and colleagues that he is actually 14,000 years old and then tries to convince he isn't lying (or crazy). It sounds kooky, but it makes for a strangely gripping and thought-provoking yarn.
The exception to prove this rule occurred over the weekend, as I polished off the following:
Under the Skin
Based on the book by Michel Faber, which I read and quite enjoyed a few years back during a sojourn in Dublin (as I recall, it provided some welcome distraction during the write-up of my PhD thesis). Despite that, I couldn't really get into the movie. Scarlett Johansen was excellent, but the interpretation (which, from memory, took considerable liberties with the original) was just too bleak and arty for my taste.
Wolf Creek 2
A mildly entertaining second outing for John Jarrett's memorable slasher from down under, Mick Taylor, who continues to subvert every cherished outback stereotype. But this one descends into straightahead torture-porn fare, and ultimately doesn't really add anything to the original.
The Man From Earth
Interesting low-budget sci-fi flick from a few years back. The premise is of a university lecturer who, at his farewall get-together before he leaves town, confesses to a group of his friends and colleagues that he is actually 14,000 years old and then tries to convince he isn't lying (or crazy). It sounds kooky, but it makes for a strangely gripping and thought-provoking yarn.
No comments:
Post a Comment