10 questions for your new home viewing adventures
Tuesday, May 17, 2016 at 3:31PM 
I expect honest answers in the comments!
Newish to DVD/BluRay
• The Boy -have you ever been scared of a doll?
• Deadpool - What did you think of that junkyard finale?
• Dirty Grandpa - Do you think Robert de Niro feels any shame about his filmography or just laughs all the way to the bank?
• Janis: Little Girl Blue - Will Amy Adams will ever actually make that Janis Joplin bio and how many movies do we really need about the singer anyway?
• The Program - Ben Foster. Scary or sexy?
• The Witch - Wouldst thou live deliciously?
Also new: Where to Invade Next, Captive, War & Peace (series), Theeb, Orange is the New Black Season 3
I am a boxer for the freedom of cinematic expression!
-Sergei Eisenstein (in Eisenstein in Guatanjuato)
Streaming
• 99 Homes - Was Michael Shannon robbed of an Oscar nom?
• Eisenstein in Guanajuato - Have you ever seen a Peter Greenaway movie? (They're so bonkers and, nowadays at least, underappreciated. Including this one)
• Hot Pursuit- Should Reese make more comedies or pursue Oscar #2 with more Wilds?
• Humans S1 - Would you feel bad about having sex with a robot programmed to serve you since they can't really give consent?
Also new: Tell Me You Love Me (S1), Regression, Kindergarten Cop 2, Goosebumps
Reader Comments (12)
I thought Michael Shannon was great in 99 Homes, but I was most impressed by Andrew Garfield who I think did really well in an against-type role.
1. My mom collects dolls. They all creep out so much.
2. Fun!
3. It's all gravy to him I bet.
4. She should pitch it to studios herself!
5. Scary sexy.
6. I don't know what this mean as I haven't seen the film yet, but... yes?
7. Shannon was great, but yes Garfield was also great. *HE* was robbed of a nom during the Social Network year.
8. I have not.
9. An Oscar-worthy comedy! Not that Oscars would bite regardless.
10. If I bought the robot for that reason, no. But if the robot was bought to be the maid/nanny who has to interact with your family then EW YES.
Michael Shannon - not robbed. It was a bit "broad villain" for me, and I didn't get enough nuance to elevate it to Oscar-worthy, like four of the eventual nominees were (to be honest, I could interchange between Shannon and Tom Hardy, although getting rids of both and putting someone like Tom Courtney or Benicio del Toro would be far preferable to me.
Have you ever seen a Peter Greenaway movie?
Only the Helen Mirren cannibal one.
Travis C: I'd honestly only keep Stallone of the Supporting Actor nominees. My field?
Jeff Daniels, Steve Jobs
Paul Giamatti, Straight Outta Compton (I know, a lot of people around here are "down" on this work, but I thought it worked very well in context.)
Nicholas Hoult, Mad Max: Fury Road
Michael Keaton, Spotlight
Sylvester Stallone, Creed.
Ryan -- i love you so much for answering all the questions. you're my hero. Also you must correct the Greenaway vacuum. THE COOK THE THIEF HIS WIFE AND HER LOVER is the most famous but PILLOW BOOK is also pretty cool
/3rtful -- i often feel that that's the *only* film of his that people have seen and he's such an original filmmaker. there is literally no one like him.
Yessir! Just added "The Cook The Thief..." on my Netflix Instant queue and "Pillow Book" on my DVD queue. :D
I watched Eisenstein in Guanajuato. It's visually arresting, but I would have probably enjoyed it a little more if I could understand the dialogue. They should have subtitled the whole film.
"Was Michael Shannon robbed of an Oscar nom?"
I'd say "I think so" re: 99 Homes, but a *definite yes* for Take Shelter. Chastain too. The scene in the storm shelter is the best acted scene I've watched in years.
I just watched Eisenstein in Guanajuato over the weekend! It is very typical Greenaway in its visuals. The split screens, the under and back lighting, the stage-y, tableau style setting. I think (might be wrong) Greenaway is a trained painter. And that influences everything he does. I didn't know a lot of the back story. The movie sort of assumes that you know the back story because it is not a non-fiction or documentary-style film. It presents the effects of the events as a type of romantic or sexual awakening.
Greenaway movies are not for everyone. You have to be into visuals and non-traditional storytelling. Pillow Book and The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, Her Lover are probably the most famous, and probably the two best (better than this one). Prospero's Books is lovely to look at.
I feel like Greenaway needs money to make a decent movie. The Baby of Macon was clearly made for $0.38. So, the visuals are not as crisp and clean. It's like he was in Washington, DC shooting the actors in NYC. A lot of really wide long fuzzy shots (maybe it was the transfer I saw). And when you don't have a traditional narrative and somewhat up close visuals to marvel at, I can see how people would be turned off.
I recently watched Little Girl Blue (it's okay - the first half, which covers her pre-stardom days, is definitely the most interesting part), and I kept thinking that Amy Adams is just too old to play Janis Joplin. Amy will turn 42 this summer, and Janis died when she was 27. If the Joplin biopic ever gets made (which I doubt at this point), it's the perfect role for a Lupita type who hasn't done much onscreen and has no preconceived expectations from the audience, not an established star.
I actually went out and bought a suit similar to the one that Ewan McGregor wears in The Pillow Book. I thought the movie was that amazing. I guess I sort of looked like Ewan in the suit, but I sure as heck didn't look like Ewan when I took it off. :-( So I'm glad that Ewan outside that suit was capture for eternity by Peter Greenaway. Shallow yes, but still.
Oh, and the rest of the movie is amazing too. You'll never look at calligraphy in quite the same way.