HBO’s LGBT History: Sex and the City (2008, 2010)

After a week off (festivals sure do take it outta you, but did you catch up on all of our fun NYFF coverage?), we're back to our regularly scheduled programming. Last we spoke, I howled in laughter watching Curb Your Enthusiasm’s “pre-gay” kid, Greg in that show’s current series finale (there’s always rumors they’ll make more episodes, but Larry David seems to be in no rush). This week, we continue looking at another HBO comedy staple, the endlessly parodied, needlessly dismissed Sarah Jessica Parker series, Sex and the City...

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'my mom's getting an Honorary and they couldn't even give me a lousy nomination for my brilliant screenplay for Postcards from the Edge'

[Hollywood Royalty problems]

Top Ten '86 Flashback. Plus A Room With a "Best Shot"!

We've done a terrible job of having top tens ready for you every Tuesday so here's a quickie from 1986 since it's Best Shot time again.

Top Ten Films of 1986

1. A Room With a View (James Ivory)
2. Aliens (James Cameron)
3. Hannah and Her Sisters (Woody Allen)
4. Little Shop of Horrors (Frank Oz)
5. My Beautiful Laundrette (Stephen Frears)
6. The Fly (David Cronenberg)
7. Betty Blue (Jean-Jacques Beineix)
8. Peggy Sue Got Married (Francis Ford Coppola)
9. Parting Glances (Bill Sherwood)
10. The Mosquito Coast (Peter Weir)

Disclaimer: I haven't seen many of these films in a very long time. I am sure there are major titles I should reconsider or see for the first time since I wasn't seeing movies as voraciously back then. 

What does your top ten from that year look like?

Basically the top three there are "all-timers" for Nathaniel, not just for an annual list. And yes yes, I'm aware that IMDb considers the James Ivory classic a 1985 movie but that's stupid because it did not open that year. It opened nowhere that year. It opened in both its home country of the UK and in the USA and then spread to other countries in the early summer of 1986. It was a big deal, crossing over from the arthouse and justly receiving a slew of Oscar and BAFTA nominations (and actual statues, too). If you've never seen it, I envy you your first time. 

BEST SHOT CHOICES...
Please click over to see the choices and read these articles. My choice will be up tomorrow so if you're running late you still have time! REPULSION, our finale of the season, will also be delayed two days (you have until Thursday the 29th to post your choice) because we have a sudden trip to London for The Danish Girl interviews this weekend so Tuesday will be impossible.

FILMMIXTAPE

The film is never lacking for gorgeous imagery, with even the most perfunctory medium dialogue shots being frames you want to live inside.

ANTAGONY & ECSTASY

The fact that it's a depiction of a literal room with a view wasn't part of my calculation

CHIRAPAT

When my mind and body long for relaxation and comfort, I usually swing the ‘costume drama’ window wide open and let it soothe my soul... 

FILM ACTUALLY

Loved every preening, posh second of Daniel Day-Lewis's performance.

MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION

Maggie Smith, she’s the ultimate symbol of the film’s humor, making (poor) Charlotte Bartlett into one of her most remarkable creations and an indispensable part of the film’s comedic construction.

ALLISON TOOEY

If it wasn’t for the costumes and some of the dialogue, the movie could have been set in almost any time period...

SORTA THAT GUY

Like many films chosen for this series, A Room with a View is a film I had meant to see sooner, but just never got around to it. 

MOVIE MOTORBREATH

Oh look!...

Exactly! Look at these movies. Pick a shot. Repulsion (1965) starring Catherine Deneuve is next on October 29th.

Open Thread

What's on your mind today?  I just marathoned about four movies and need a moment to collect myself. 

P.S. if you'd like Q&A and the experiment of TV MVPs on a weekly basis make sure to comment so we know you're reading / care. You're playing hard-to-get lately out there in the dark.

Best Shot: Final Two Episodes!

We promised two episodes to conclude our sixth season of Hit Me With Your Best Shot. Join us in these parties by picking what you think of as the movie's "best shot" on the following days. We'll link up.

A ROOM WITH A VIEW (James Ivory)
Deadline Wed October 21st - Here are the first articles ! 
One of the greatest movies ever according to sane people like your host. "Merchant/Ivory" became a substitute name for an entire genre (the costume drama) for a time but there was never anybody as good at as them in their heyday. See Helena Bonham Carter & Daniel Day Lewis as engaged young Brits back when they were babies before anybody knew who they were. Plus Rupert Graves and Julian Sands at their prettiest. And, last but not least, Dame Maggie & Judi, best friends in real life, as best friends on screen. And so much more! 
Netflix Instant | Criterion Collection | Amazon Instant 

REPULSION (Roman Polanski)
Deadline Thursday Evening October 29th
In which virginal Catherine Deneuve totally loses her (mental) shit. A psychological horror and the first of Polanski's three consecutive films about people losing their minds in apartment buildings. (Rosemary's Baby was right around the corner.) 
Netflix Rental | Criterion Collection | YouTube Full Movie

You in?