I have this theory that a lot of our social issues stem from people having no perspective on how good life is and how really really bad it could so easily be. They havnt had to EARN the freedom they have. They don’t even realize what it means to be free in this context.
The Hardcore History podcast did a six part series on the First World War and I'd really recommend checking it out. It's still available on their feed if you scroll back through it. It's called Blueprint for Armageddon. It features excerpts from a bunch of first hand accounts of soldiers in the trenches. Being a soldier in those trenches sounds like the one of the worst places to be in human history.
I watched this movie Sunday. I was glad I did. Would watch again. Just amazing how much intensity and suspense there is from the natural setting. Probably so much more than any horror movie than I can think of or suspense thrillers of recent times. Just a heavy movie overall.
Just got back from the theatre.
Fantastic fucking movie, I know some people complained that it didn't have enough action but I found it extremely tense, the pacing for me was perfect.
Only complaint was that it may my girlfriend sick, we saw it on laser and the no cut framing certainly the panning made her ill enough to leave early.
I'll definitely be buying it on 4k bd so we can watch again in a smaller environment.
It was a really good movie. The only thing I "disliked" about the movie and that's a putting it strongly is how
when he jumps in the river toward the end, he conveniently washes up right where he's supposed to. Thought it was a little cheesy and Hollywoodized.
but other than that it was terrific. It was a war movie, but more about a simpler bond between soldiers than a grander outlook on the war. It's a very different film than Saving Private Ryan, Apocalypse Now, movies like that. Amazing cinematography.
Watched it the other day. It was a tense film to watch, was so hard to watch that one particular scene after the plane crash too. I honestly cried. That's how immersive it was, the power of camaraderie.
I thought technically it was a fantastic film (as per my Review in the Film club Thread) however I'm not sure it quite worked on an emotional level at times and in large part, I think that is because of the limitations of the whole 'one' shot approach that Mendes wanted I think certain scenes could have really benefitted from some actual close-ups and cuts between characters to see reactions and responses to build our relationship to them. Rules are great, but you should never let them get in the way of good storytelling and in that regard I think the film suffers somewhat. Still an impressive film though and certainly a must-see cinematic experience. I just think Mendes let his fixation on the 'oner' override making a better more emotionally engaging film at the end of the day.
I just watched this last night and I purposely went in blind on it.
I liked it, but I didn't know ahead of time about the "long take" aspect (or maybe I heard about it but dismissed it?)
After the first couple of minutes I noticed something was off, and realized there weren't any camera edits. A few minutes later, shit, how long is this take? Then I spent the next two hours trying to see where all the magic edits were. My fault, but it took me out of narrative a fair bit.
I was lucky enough to watch the last IMAX show today and damn was I impressed. Will keep things vague here just so anyone who hasn't watched should do so before it gets removed from the big screen. So many of the scenes were so intense, especially the night scene which played like a very tense survival horror mission. Most of all though the swelling of music during the run and how it played out was breathtaking. I only remember being this engrossed in a film since I watched BR 2049 back in 2017.
It was OK. But not as realistic as they try to make it and still has all the dramatic cliches of a Holywood movie. Also, i felt like there was always something to look at in the background every few seconds in the shot. Like a rat passing by, a corpse, a broken tree, a dead horse, an interesting sight. It's like they wanted to make this one-take looking movie but at the same time they didn't want to alienate low attention span people. Also, i found it funny how in one scene the convoy got stuck in the only mud puddle in a huge, perfect looking, flat grass covered field.
I just watched this last night and I purposely went in blind on it.
I liked it, but I didn't know ahead of time about the "long take" aspect (or maybe I heard about it but dismissed it?)
After the first couple of minutes I noticed something was off, and realized there weren't any camera edits. A few minutes later, shit, how long is this take? Then I spent the next two hours trying to see where all the magic edits were. My fault, but it took me out of narrative a fair bit.
Yeh I saw this the other night and thought the same. I really enjoyed it but the “long take” aspect just made me look for where the edits were and actually took away from the immersion for me. It was really impressive on a technical level but in some ways had the opposite effect than was intended. I’d still highly recommend people check it out.
Absolutely phenomenal movie. I saw the trailer like some months before release and thought it looked great but basically forgot about it. Two days ago a friend asked If I wanna see the movie and I agreed.
Beautifully shot. Reminded me a lot of the new god of war (was like the first media I consumed where there were no cuts) as it’s one long shot.
enjoyed the movie and that the brother was killed was unexpected
I thought technically it was a fantastic film (as per my Review in the Film club Thread) however I'm not sure it quite worked on an emotional level at times and in large part, I think that is because of the limitations of the whole 'one' shot approach that Mendes wanted I think certain scenes could have really benefitted from some actual close-ups and cuts between characters to see reactions and responses to build our relationship to them. Rules are great, but you should never let them get in the way of good storytelling and in that regard I think the film suffers somewhat. Still an impressive film though and certainly a must-see cinematic experience. I just think Mendes let his fixation on the 'oner' override making a better more emotionally engaging film at the end of the day.
I couldn't disagree more. My only complaint is how some situations seem over the top and extremely unlucky made just to look entertaining to the audience.
The plane falling right where they were at? And then the thing with the pilot... Wtf man lol
Some scenes were out of this world gorgeous. And fuck close ups, we going nonstop and I like that.
If you don't get how emotionally effective it is this way instead of the tried and true conventional dramatic cinema angles I feel like having these preconceptions occupy your subconscious hinder your experience.
But yeah I know it isn't trying to be a 1:1 account of ww1, and so for what it is I think it was a good film.
Saw this the weekend. What an amazing movie, with some beautiful scenes. Knowing the horror of the millions of people that died, the way they fought by just throwing bodies at the front lines, man the feels.
The 'one-shot' nature of this film completely upends the typical experience of watching a movie. A bit in, I felt myself unusually attached to everything going on, thinking about typical movie stuff in different ways, and altogether feeling like I was on the exact same journey the main characters were.
To elalaborate a little, not cutting just brings a sense of realism. Most movies rely on this so much, that if you really step back and look at it, the cuts can sometimes be every bit as nonsensical and non-sequitur as a dream. Less than a second can be a five hour difference with totally different events going on.
Dropping this, especially for a war movie, is such a cool, interesting thing. You get a real sense of place, and moving through it. You get more of a connection to the characters, and ponder the same things they do. You feel like you're there.
It's more than, 'Hahaha, we did a one-shot, we're so awesome'; it's a legitimately better way to make a film with this subject matter.
Of course, all this would fall flat without a good surrounding story and characters, and I really enjoyed it here too. I felt that it was much less Hollywood -- that plane aside, lol -- than the typical stuff, which more and more comes off to me like spoiled rotten whiny billionaires having childish pretend time with production value and forced drama. This really had impact and a genuineness to it.
The death was really well handled, and sad. From the shock of it happening, to the sheer, realistic panic of the at-first perfectly fine character, to watching him go downhill quickly over the next few minutes, the color even draining from his face constantly, it was extremely haunting. This is how I imagine it would happen in real life, and there's a disturbing element to seeing it portrayed that way.
Would definitely recommend. Not a masterpiece, but a film that thinks differently, will stick with you, and absolutely an experience you want to have. It's an oasis in a sea of trash.
i thought 1917 felt pretty unnatural with its storytelling and the one shot effect was a bit gimmicky imo
what i mean by unnatural is that nothing really takes its time to simmer, it is more cue based progression like oh A happened so lets quickly get to B, things arent really like that if youre going for realism.. things kinda happen too conviently so the ball can keep rolling
like when tommen gets knifed and homeboy is carrying him to transfer his body, thats exactly when the pilots kinda cleanly show up to offer help
then when homeboy is out of the water right then he hears singing, and just as he gets to the source of the singing, miraculously its the group hes been looking for
if theres one movie that masterfully handles the one shot effect, its alfonso cuarons children of men
negatives aside, there were some moving moments in 1917 and nice performances
its a good theatre experience
first german crashes his plane into a fireball, still gets a knife kill
second german gets knocked down from gunfire and still lands a headshot
dont ever fuck with a german whos been reduced to 2 hp lol
i didn't really enjoy it. i didn't hate it but i just don't see what was special about it. the "one shot" gimmick is ridiculous. it'd be impressive if they did do that but the transitions are obvious and it didn't help that part of it was filmed in my city so it just didn't feel believable.
if i remember right it was from when he gets off the truck to cross the bridge and starts getting shot at. i can't remember where it ends but that whole section was filmed here. you will recognise this building from the movie:
what i mean by unnatural is that nothing really takes its time to simmer, it is more cue based progression like oh A happened so lets quickly get to B, things arent really like that if youre going for realism.. things kinda happen too conviently so the ball can keep rolling
like when tommen gets knifed and homeboy is carrying him to transfer his body, thats exactly when the pilots kinda cleanly show up to offer help
then when homeboy is out of the water right then he hears singing, and just as he gets to the source of the singing, miraculously its the group hes been looking for
Yeah, you either buy it or you're constantly aware of the gimmick. I especially hated how obvious some of the transitions were. It's really strange how it tries to feel like it's real time but it's also very compressed. It's a dreamlike flow of time that I did not buy at all.
Yeah, you either buy it or you're constantly aware of the gimmick. I especially hated how obvious some of the transitions were. It's really strange how it tries to feel like it's real time but it's also very compressed. It's a dreamlike flow of time that I did not buy at all.
how many other "one long take" movies are released? of course it's got the attention it would get
it's not a bad movie, but it is nowhere near a masterpiece
if this was shot more conventionally it would be a clearly mediocre movie
after seeing all the marketing that went into advertising 1917 i thought it would be a proper hectic action movie with soldiers dealing an absolute nuclear shit storm of cannon blast diarrhea
i highly recommend anyone who's seen 1917 to check out children of men if they already haven't, now that is how you do "one long take"
The story was just fine, but the scenes felt overly choreographed to accommodate the single take effect, instead of recreating someone's life experience. It reminded me of the Spice Girls' Wannabe music video.
Other movies with a full or partial single take effect (Children of Men, Birdman etc) managed to be more convincing, so even though the single take effect seems gimmicky, in this case I'd place more of the blame on the direction
