The World Beyond BetterMost > The Culture Tent
In the New Yorker...
serious crayons:
--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on April 19, 2020, 12:38:56 pm ---A couple of days ago I watched the recent movie The Lighthouse which was favorably reviewed in TNY. It was so creepy it gave me nightmares.
Two guys in a Godforesaken lonely place out in the middle of nowhere. Yes, there was attraction, but not in the Brokeback way. Ends badly, but not in the Brokeback way.
I honestly can't recommend it. If you like psychological thrillers, then maybe. It could also be termed a horror movie, in the sense that you are horrified that it was made into a movie.
And yes, wonderful Robert Pattinson is one of the two guys. But still...
--- End quote ---
Yeah, I've heard that higly praised, but have been reluctant to watch it myself. If it's something that's going to make me feel bleak afterward, I'll skip it. I can handle sad, a la Brokeback, but not bleak, a la Requiem for a Dream, Platoon, Leaving Las Vegas, Manchester by the Sea ...
Have you seen Nice Guys, in which Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling play kind of bumbling cops? That one was light and fun. I have been thinking of watching it again.
Front-Ranger:
--- Quote from: serious crayons on April 19, 2020, 05:17:36 pm ---Yeah, I've heard that higly praised, but have been reluctant to watch it myself. If it's something that's going to make me feel bleak afterward, I'll skip it. I can handle sad, a la Brokeback, but not bleak, a la Requiem for a Dream, Platoon, Leaving Las Vegas, Manchester by the Sea ...
Have you seen Nice Guys, in which Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling play kind of bumbling cops? That one was light and fun. I have been thinking of watching it again.
--- End quote ---
Yes, it was so bleak that it felt right that it was in black and white. I found out later that it was based on a story of 2 lighthouse keepers, one of which died by accident and the other one kept the body around to prove that he hadn't murdered him. But then he went crazy.
I need some more good, uplifting movie suggestions! I watched An Education again. I had forgotten that it is not uplifting or hopeful. Manchester by the Sea was one that scarred me for life. I could not understand what all the hoopla was about it.
Jeff Wrangler:
--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on April 28, 2020, 10:58:55 am ---I need some more good, uplifting movie suggestions!
--- End quote ---
Do you mean morally or spiritually, or just cheerful?
serious crayons:
--- Quote from: Front-Ranger on April 28, 2020, 10:58:55 am ---Manchester by the Sea was one that scarred me for life. I could not understand what all the hoopla was about it.
--- End quote ---
Manchester by the Sea and other bleak movies don't usually scar me for life, but they do scar me for a few days.
In some cases, I can understand the hoopla even if I wished I hadn't seen the movie. Leaving Las Vegas, for example, is very well made. So is Requiem for a Dream. But after I saw them, I wished I hadn't. Still, some people -- including my son -- don't mind bleakness in movies at all.
About 20 years ago (after seeing Affliction with Nick Nolte), I realized I just don't want to see bleak movies, however well regarded. Occasionally I'm not sufficiently forewarned, but generally I try to keep an eye out for them and stay away. Most recently, The Joker. Some directors I know to avoid, such as Lars von Trier.
Speaking of bleakness and, ostensibly, the New Yorker, Atul Gawande's piece a couple of issues ago about deaths of despair is, in a way, well timed. I'm sure it was written before the pandemic hit this country, but I'm sure the pandemic will cause deaths of despair to skyrocket. There's a story in the paper today about a doctor who, with no history of mental illness, killed herself after working in ERs in NYC.
For a safe light but critically acclaimed viewing, you can't go too wrong with Wes Anderson.
Jeff Wrangler:
--- Quote from: serious crayons on April 28, 2020, 03:45:38 pm ---There's a story in the paper today about a doctor who, with no history of mental illness, killed herself after working in ERs in NYC.
--- End quote ---
That made TV news, too. So sad. :(
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