tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post8774116144297542938..comments2024-01-11T05:02:32.321-05:00Comments on Goodfella's Movie Blog: 1966: Persona (Ingmar Bergman)Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07134196370913749544noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-44818185505784726902009-10-14T22:04:05.729-04:002009-10-14T22:04:05.729-04:00Masculin Feminin all the way - a movie I passionat...Masculin Feminin all the way - a movie I passionately adore.Joel Bockohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-11201426360437034322009-08-16T13:40:46.339-04:002009-08-16T13:40:46.339-04:001967 was a great year for American film, so there ...1967 was a great year for American film, so there is a lot of competition but they will show up or at least one ir two will.<br /><br />BTW I left off my 1966 list Resnais' La Guerre est FinieJohnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808503055317962289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-51194465049913033922009-08-16T13:17:22.981-04:002009-08-16T13:17:22.981-04:00John - I'll be interested to see where you pla...John - I'll be interested to see where you place Leone's westerns when they come up in the US release years. And I definitely can't argue with your choosing The Battle of Algiers -- I'm still amazed at how documentary-like it feels.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07134196370913749544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-61300476526991173252009-08-15T18:17:52.455-04:002009-08-15T18:17:52.455-04:00I was incorrect in adding “Battle of Algiers” to t...I was incorrect in adding “Battle of Algiers” to the 1965 list, so I am adding it again here and listing it my # 1 choice (is that fair? Ha!). Again, Leone’s Eastwood westerns were not released in the US until 1967 so The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly will appear in your next posting. <br /><br />#1 Battle of Algiers<br /><br />Seconds<br />Mademoiselle<br />Hunger<br />Seconds<br />Blow Up<br />Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf<br />The ProfessionalsJohnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808503055317962289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-12115811448887459922009-08-15T16:26:51.366-04:002009-08-15T16:26:51.366-04:00LOL!!!!
If you put a gun to my head I would have ...LOL!!!!<br /><br />If you put a gun to my head I would have to go with the BressonSam Julianonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-8017345600712217042009-08-15T14:03:17.606-04:002009-08-15T14:03:17.606-04:00Sam - I knew that those two films are among your a...Sam - I knew that those two films are among your all-time favorites, so I was interested to see which one you would go with. But don't worry, I won't tell Allan that you're still resorting to the ties! :)<br /><br />Sebina - I can't argue with anyone choosing Melville, although for me his best was still yet to come (hint, hint!)<br /><br />Samuel - I agree about Au Hasard... just going by the description, it does not sound like one that I would enjoy. But it's a great film.<br /><br />Ed - You're right about "pretentious" being flung around way too much. And I also know of your love for Godard, which unfortunately is something of an unknown for me in many cases -- outside of the usual like Breathless and Contempt.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07134196370913749544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-80104878200110896992009-08-15T13:22:23.619-04:002009-08-15T13:22:23.619-04:00Ed I had MASCULINE FEMININE as 1967 erroneously, a...Ed I had MASCULINE FEMININE as 1967 erroneously, and I failed to include the Warhol film, which was actually written, but not typed in here. That Teshigahara does view with DUNES for his best. It's too close to call.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-3795992571960798502009-08-15T12:18:57.830-04:002009-08-15T12:18:57.830-04:00I've always thought that accusations of preten...I've always thought that accusations of pretentiousness are the laziest form of criticism, basically taking a filmmaker to task for daring to be ambitious and intellectual. The most challenging and unusual films are generally declared "pretentious," as though that really said anything about them. <i>Persona</i> is arguably Bergman's most experimental and enigmatic film. I think the film is coherent in terms of its ideas, but you're right that any attempt to untangle the narrative is rather hopeless, since it's purposefully vague about what's happening, much of which is metaphysical rather than physical. It's a great film, one I'd have no problem placing towards the top of any list.<br /><br />My own 1966 list, though, would probably be topped with Godard's <i>Masculin feminin</i>, one of his best 60s films. I also have to mention Kluge's great <i>Yesterday Girl</i>, <i>The Good, the Bad and the Ugly</i>, <i>The Battle of Algiers</i>, Rivette's underrated second film <i>The Nun</i>, Teshigahara's best film <i>The Face of Another</i>, Warhol's mind-blowing Velvet Underground concert film, and of course the obscure avant-garde dance short <i>9 Variations on a Dance Theme</i>, by Hilary Harris, which I wrote about just a few days ago.Ed Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18014222247676090467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-48908046981227709042009-08-15T10:53:47.977-04:002009-08-15T10:53:47.977-04:00Dave, as I've said before, Bergman is my big b...Dave, as I've said before, Bergman is my big blind spot in cinema history, not because I thought him pretentious but because I thought him mundane. Your appraisal of Persona obliges me to rethink that attitude. The local library has a copy of Persona and I think I want to look at it now.<br /><br />I have seen Au Hasard Balthazar, and there's a film I wouldn't have expected liking until I saw it. It is a great film, but I'm inclined to prefer Battle of Algiers. After those two come Le Deuxieme Souffle<br />The Good the Bad and the Ugly<br />Kihachi Okamoto's Sword of Doom<br />Jacopetti & Prosperi's Africa Addio<br />Blow-Up<br />Robert Wise's The Sand Pebbles<br />Mario Bava's Knives of the Avenger<br />John Frankenheimer's Seconds<br /><br />Like a lot of people, I've only seen fragments of Chimes at Midnight, but I don't doubt that it would make my list if I'd seen the whole thing. Andrei Rublev and the Bondarchuk War & Peace are films I still want to see.Samuel Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934870299522899944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-76079411311493596622009-08-15T10:47:58.152-04:002009-08-15T10:47:58.152-04:00I have yet to see Persona (even though I have it),...I have yet to see Persona (even though I have it), though have read a great deal about it.<br /><br />I'm a huge fan of Melville; Le deuxième soufflé (1966) is a great film, even if it's a bit too long in length. <br /><br />I'm considering re-viewing Blow-Up (1966) again, as I didn't like it the first time around. I suppose I didn't understand it and felt it to be a too strange a film. However, I have enjoyed other Michelangelo Antonioni films.<br /><br />A truly great blog!<br />- SebinaClassic Maidenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06452165665779363139noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-578997264816756307.post-50246708817189514342009-08-15T10:29:29.655-04:002009-08-15T10:29:29.655-04:00My Own #1 Film of 1966:
Au Hasard Baltazar (Bress...My Own #1 Film of 1966:<br /><br />Au Hasard Baltazar (Bresson)<br />Persona (Bergman) TIE<br /><br /><br />Runners-Up:<br /><br />Andrei Rublev (Tarkovsky; Russia)<br />The Battle of Algiers (Pontecorvo; France; Italy)<br />The Face of Another (Teshigahara; Japan)<br />Chimes at Midnight (Welles)<br />Hunger (Carlsson; Denmark)<br />A Man For All Seasons (Zinemann)<br />War and Peace (Bonderchuk; Russia)<br />Young Torless (Schlondorf; Germany)<br />La Religieuse (Rivette; France)<br />La Guerre est Finie (Resnais; France)<br />Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Nichols)<br />Asya's Happiness (Konchalovsky; Russia)<br />Closely Watched Trains (Menzel; Czechoslovakia)<br />Absheid von Gestern (Kluge; West Germany)<br />Daisies (Chytilova; Czechoslovakia)<br /><br />Fabulous, fantastic, extraordinary essay here Dave on one of the greatest films of all-time, and for me close enough to the Bresson to declare my first flat-footed tie of your countdown. PERSONA vies with FANNY AND ALEXANDER as Bergman's best film, while the timeless and shattering BALTHAZAR is Bresson's masterwork. 1966 is actually an extraordinary year in cinema.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.com