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| Russian Ark; My artsy-fartsy movie recommendation for the week. | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Apr 26 2011, 02:33 AM (220 Views) | |
| Aqua Letifer | Apr 26 2011, 02:33 AM Post #1 |
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ZOOOOOM!
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At the risk of sounding like a fruity ass-hat, what a great freaking movie! It's very hard to describe because the setup is so different from most. I suppose what I'll say is that it's a tour through the St. Petersburg Winter Palace and portrays the place in various time periods. Oh, and all 96 minutes were recorded in one single shot. And I don't mean like in Rope where they tried to present the illusion that they pulled it off, this was the real deal. Which is all the more amazing when you consider that each scene was indeed painstakingly planned. (They screwed up three times prior to the final shooting, and the battery on the cameras only had juice left for one more go. And it had to be then, they only had the one day to have the museum all to themselves to shoot the movie. (Happened to be the winter solstice, ackshully.)) The last scene was by far the most stunning and technically difficult from just about every perspective, and in the commentary the cameraman says that he damn near passed out before he even entered the room. No 'splosions, no James Horner soundtrack, no screenplay rewrites of overdone ideas, no twist endings, spy sh!t, annoying child actors, plot puzzles, ethnic typecasts, fakeout deaths, no cliched or cheap plot devices of any kind. Hell, the story doesn't even have a protagonist or antagonist and there's sure as hell no "problem" to solve. If nothing else the movie was just damn refreshing. And holy crap was it splendiferous. Absolutely amazing. Not only is the Winter Palace an amazing setting, they had some really cool stuff going on in there. Both orchestras they had playing in the movie were, well, actually playing. Crazy stuff. If nothing else the movie really made me wish I knew more about Russian history. |
| I cite irreconcilable differences. | |
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| apple | Apr 26 2011, 02:41 AM Post #2 |
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one of the angels
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I cannot wait. I love Russian art, have wonderful Russian friends, am NOT letting my daughter go to Russia this summer with her bestie. (have you happened to have seen 'Burnt by the Sun'..? such a great, but rather schmaltzy movie.. it's gorgeous.. one of the more endearing things is that the daughter of the movie star cut her bangs super short (1/4") before filming.. just a cute detail. It is most probably not of the excellence of the russian ark, but it's wonderful film in it's own genre. I'll think I'll buy Russian Ark for mr. apple for his bday.. I've been meaning to explore 'St Petersburg' anyway.. what a great place that should be. (I'm lovin this shopping on line) Edited by apple, Apr 26 2011, 02:43 AM.
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| it behooves me to behold | |
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| Aqua Letifer | Apr 26 2011, 02:43 AM Post #3 |
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ZOOOOOM!
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Actually, I said "Both orchestras they had playing in the movie were, well, actually playing." My bad, there were three. And yeah, I have seen Burnt by the Sun at some point, but don't remember if I liked it or not. Might have to see it again? |
| I cite irreconcilable differences. | |
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| JBryan | Apr 26 2011, 04:11 AM Post #4 |
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I am the grey one
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I don't think you sound like a fruity ass-hat. that is, unless there was a lot of goober smooching in the movie. |
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"Any man who would make an X rated movie should be forced to take his daughter to see it". - John Wayne There is a line we cross when we go from "I will believe it when I see it" to "I will see it when I believe it". Henry II: I marvel at you after all these years. Still like a democratic drawbridge: going down for everybody. Eleanor: At my age there's not much traffic anymore. From The Lion in Winter. | |
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| jon-nyc | Apr 26 2011, 04:33 AM Post #5 |
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Cheers
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Sounds pretty fruity to me, asshat. |
| In my defense, I was left unsupervised. | |
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| sue | Apr 26 2011, 05:23 AM Post #6 |
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HOLY CARP!!!
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Thanks, Aqua. Sounds right up my alley. I'm going to look for it.
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| The 89th Key | Apr 26 2011, 06:18 AM Post #7 |
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Added to Netflix!
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| KlavierBauer | Apr 26 2011, 07:06 AM Post #8 |
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HOLY CARP!!!
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That sounds really awesome - I'll have to check it out. Did you ever see Octpob? (Ostrov) Another Russian "artsy" movie - though not in the same spirit as the one you've mentioned. It's a story about an old monk and the secretes of his past - really touching story. |
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"I realize you want him to touch you all over and give you babies, but his handling of the PR side really did screw the pooch." - Ivory Thumper "He said sleepily: "Don't worry mom, my dick is like hot logs in the morning." - Apple | |
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| Friday | Apr 26 2011, 08:48 AM Post #9 |
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Senior Carp
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I second Aqua recommendation. It's an interesting movie with a great ending. |
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| George K | Apr 26 2011, 10:47 AM Post #10 |
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Finally
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I'll have to check it out. This looks really interesting. In ONE TAKE, and in ONE SHOT? The whole freaking movie??? WTF???? |
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A guide to GKSR: Click "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08 Nothing is as effective as homeopathy. I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles. - Klaus, 4/29/18 | |
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| KlavierBauer | Apr 26 2011, 12:31 PM Post #11 |
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HOLY CARP!!!
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AL: Are you familiar with Tony Jaa's martial arts movies? The "single shot" comment on this movie made me think of one he did, which has what has to be the longest single fight scene ever. It's all one take, with one camera, and spans several floors of some building. Pretty amazing stunt work, and awesome fight choreography (obviously). Tony Jaa Clip |
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"I realize you want him to touch you all over and give you babies, but his handling of the PR side really did screw the pooch." - Ivory Thumper "He said sleepily: "Don't worry mom, my dick is like hot logs in the morning." - Apple | |
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