It seems cliched, until you realize this was the one that started the cliches. It’s also an interesting study in story-making–Clint Eastwood’s Man with No Name has no motivation for interfering in the border town’s power struggle, nor for helping its downtrodden citizens. Yet we don’t worry about it. Maybe we accept that it’s what Western heroes do and just want them to get to it.
July 7, 2011
July 3, 2011
Touch of Evil in 13 seconds
It’s so refreshing to be reminded that films can be over 50 years old and still have sharp, twisty plots and incredibly rich dialogue. Touch of Evil stands up after all this time as a noir masterpiece. It’s a mature movie for a mature audience (I mean that in the best possible way). It’s one of those films that made me feel smarter.
The Birds in 13 seconds
Why does spoiled rich girl Melanie chase dashing Mitch to his coastal hometown? What’s the attraction between these two divergent personalities? Will Mitch’s mother interfere? What about Annie, his old flame? And does Melanie bring something more sinister with…wait! Who needs answers and resolution when we’s got… BIRDS!!!!
July 1, 2011
Notorious in 13 seconds
I know Hitchcock was a genius, and Ingrid Bergman is quite possibly Hollywood’s most beautiful woman ever. But I have a hard time suspending my contemporary sensibilities enough to believe her cheesy pillow talk with Cary Grant, and the end arrives too lazily. It’s much better than the similarly-plotted Mission Impossible II, but at least it had a nice Tae-Kwon-Do match at the end…
March 7, 2011
The Seven Samuri in 13 seconds
It moves surprisingly fast for its three-hour running time. The cinematography is remarkable–instead of today’s quick cuts and over-stylized sequences, we see lots of long, unedited shots. Counter-intuitively (to me, anyway), it actually ramps up the tension–you realize these characters are fighting for their lives. Their swordplay isn’t awesome–they just want the other guy to die reeeeaaalll bad.
Tip o' My Brain 