Films I've seen recently.

Small scale research project

For my research, I plan to look at how violence is presented in the films of Quentin Tarantino. 




Main focus film

• Reservoir Dogs

Support films

• Kill Bill Vol. 1
• Death Proof (or Inglorious Basterds)

Resources

• Tarantino books from college library
• Tarantino DVD boxset

Films I've seen recently

Shifty - This isn't the kind of film I tend to like, I found this too boring. I didn't feel anything towards the characters, therefore didn't care what happened to them. 

Reservoir Dogs - Wow, I can't believe I hadn't seen this sooner. I was gripped throughout the whole film and I loved the order of the narrative. Also, I'll never hear the song 'Stuck in the Middle With You' in the same way again.

The Good Night - I'd be lying if I said I watched this for any reason except Simon Pegg. So I was disappointed because his character wasn't even likeable! I haven't been this bored watching a film for a long time, so just never watch this film.

Paul - I've been looking forward to this for a while, because I'm a huge fan of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. It was much funnier than I'd expected, and Paul is such a great character! However, it definitely is missing that Edgar Wright touch, because I felt the direction wasn't as fast paced as it could have been. Still, loved it.
























Rec 2 - I loved Rec, and this sequel didn't disappoint, surprisingly! It takes place not long after the first film, but features a different group of people trying to survive in an apartment building with zombie-like creatures. It's filmed with a camcorder so that makes it a lot scarier.

From Dusk Till Dawn - What an odd film. It starts off like Pulp Fiction (and coincidentally, Tarantino acts in this film) but halfway through turns into a vampire movie! It's all a bit ridiculous but it was entertaining nonetheless. 




























Fargo - I loved this, mainly for Frances McDormand's character, Marge. She's so positive in such a grim situation. 

The Social Network - I've been wanting to see this since it came out but for some reason never got round to it! So I bought it on DVD and absolutely loved it. I remember hearing about 'a Facebook movie being in production' and thinking that it would be terrible, but then of course I heard it's directed by David Fincher who has directed so many amazing films. There's a lot of young acting talent in it as well! And the soundtrack is very subtle but beautiful.

True Grit - Completely deserved the Oscar nominations. Hailee Steinfeld is clearly going to do great in the future, I see her as the new Natalie Portman. Jeff Bridges was great too, obviously, but sometimes it was difficult to understand what he was saying! 

Films I've seen recently

The King's Speech - Really enjoyable film. It was much more light-hearted than I expected, and I was laughing quite a lot. Colin Firth is brilliant, it must have been a difficult character to play. I think it's worthy of all the awards it's winning/being nominated for, but I hope it doesn't win all the awards.



















District 9 - I wish I'd seen this sooner. I loved this film for many reasons; the way it was filmed, the situation, the "prawns". I've never felt so much sympathy for an alien before!








Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - This film was nothing special. I felt like there wasn't much more they could get from these same characters, and half an hour into the film it was all getting a bit repetitive.










Black Swan - My favourite film of 2011 so far. I loved everything about it. The cinematography was beautiful, as was the music. Natalie Portman was flawless and the ending left me shaking (I get too emotionally attached in some films) I have high hopes for it at the Oscars on Sunday.




Withnail & I - I've been trying to watch all the "cult comedy" films, so I recorded this when it was on TV the other week. It was very grim but also hilarious at times. I wasn't paying attention completely but I still think it was a great film. 












Psycho - This was the 1998 remake, which wasn't terrible, it just seemed a bit pointless. It used the same shots, the same script, the same music, and I don't understand why they felt they had to remake it when the original is brilliant. If anything, watching it made me think "I need to watch the original again, or instead of this".
Never Let Me Go - I've been looking forward to this film for a long time, since reading the book and loving it. I heard there was an advanced screening of it 5 days before the UK release, so I went to that, and it was followed by a satellite Q&A with the author Kazuo Ishiguro which was interesting. I absolutely loved it, and it's a shame that it's going so unnoticed by audiences and the Oscars. It's one of the most heartbreaking films I've ever seen and Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield are brilliant in it. 

Shifty - Personal Response

I don't have a lot to say about this film. I thought it was alright, but I definitely would not want to pay to see it. Considering the low budget, it was well made, but unfortunately I didn't find there was anything keeping me interested.  I wouldn't recommend it.

Slumdog Millionaire - Personal Response

I've seen this film two times already, and I had never liked it that much. However, on this viewing I liked it a lot more, I'm not sure why, maybe I was just feeling a lot more open-minded. What really caught my interest this time was the soundtrack. It compliments the urban feel to the film and I really loved it. The plot is great and very in-depth, and all the young actors played their parts well.

The Damned United - Personal Response

I was reluctant to watch this film, the reason being that the subject of football simply bores me. For the first hour of the film, I wasn't interested at all However, in the last half an hour, the film focused more on the relationship between Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, rather than the football aspect and I was much more engaged with the film. The performances were great, especially because the end credits showed clips of the real Brian Clough, and we could see how well Michael Sheen did copying his accent and manner.

High Concept Film - Charlie's Angels

• Self conscious allusion to films and television - In the plane scene at the beginning, a character talks about one of the films being shown on the plane is adapted from an 'old tv show'. Charlie's Angels is itself, adapted from an 'old tv show'.
• Use of extended montages - There is a flashback sequence showing us the characters, with music accompaniment.
• Hyperbolic physiques and action - The three Angels' appearance is typically hyperbolic.
• Post-generic filmmaking - Combines the 'action' and 'comedy' genres
• Easily replicated in publicity - Most of the scenes in the movie contain enough action to easily represent the film in a poster.
• Formal excess - Action scenes involve over the top and physically impossible moves, as well as slow motion moments.
• Ironic distanciation - The car chase scene manages to get to the Golden Gate bridge, a landmark of San Francisco.  

Films I've seen recently

Day of the Dead - I liked that it had different concepts to the usual zombie movie. They could be tamed, like the main zombie in the film, Bub, who provides moments of comedy. The film also deals with sexism and human relationships, and a lot of the time, the zombies weren't even the main focus point. However, I had previously seen the 2008  remake, and I'm going against the popular opinion by preferring that version. I find it scarier and quicker paced.






Zodiac - a wonderfully made David Fincher film, with a great cast and engaging plot. The murder scene by the lake was a stand out scene for me, because it felt real, and knowing that it's based on true events makes it all the more hard-hitting.








American Psycho - I didn't really know what to expect from this film, but I really enjoyed it. Christian Bale is great as Patrick Bateman, I can't imagine anyone else playing such a complex yet often hilarious character.










Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn - I haven't seen 'The Evil Dead', but I'd always heard that the sequel is significantly better, and that you don't need to have seen the first film to understand this one. It's a great horror comedy; Sam Raimi is a brilliant director, I found the cinematography in this film unique and effective. Plus, Bruce Campbell is hilarious.






Megamind - After seeing the trailers, I was fairly reluctant about going to see this, but my friend insisted so I went with her. I ended up enjoying it a lot, Megamind is a lovable character and to put it simply, the film was cute.













Zombieland - I'd been keen to see this for a long time, because everyone says it's an "american Shaun of the Dead". Generally, I liked it, but for a film with 'zombie' in the title, I didn't think there were many zombies featured! The actors were great though, I love Abigail Breslin, she's gonna be big in the future! Also, Bill Murray's cameo was hilarious.










Evil Dead 3 (Army of Darkness) - More gory madness, with occasional great moments. It didn't have the same claustrophobic feel of the cabin in Dead by Dawn though.






Harry Potter and the Deathly Harrows Part 1 - I loved it, hence I went to see it twice. I'm really glad the final book is split into 2 films, because this was paced just right. The score by Alexandre Desplat is beautiful and made the sad scenes much more heartbreaking. I really liked the scene where Hermione and Harry danced together, although it wasn't in the book.



Saw VI - The  Saw series is getting slightly ridiculous now, yet I still watch each one. The opening scene was one of the hardest scenes in any of the movies to watch, even my Dad had to cover his eyes.