Recent watches & Brilliant films that CANNOT be seen again
Recent watches & Brilliant films that CANNOT be seen again
Just so that this post doesn’t become embarassingly small (since the second topic isn’t tooo long to be talked about), I’m writing a little about some of the recent watches.
1. In the mood for love - nice uptill a point. visually superb. But found it boring after some time. Couldnt wait for the film to finish. The same was with chungking express. 2046 toh i couldn’t finish.
By the way - the california dreaming song from Chungking was lovely. Brilliant song that I’d not listen to again. (read below)
2. Hirak Rajar Deshe (satyajit ray) - superb !!! must watch. Bonus feature- Utpal Dutt !!!
Will be watching Gopi Gyne… tonight
3.The Eye (Pang brothers)- nice horror film.. but i had already seen Naina (ok ok types). Nevertheless The eye was rather enchanting watch. Scary for sure.
4. Marebito - a supposedly scary film. Couldn’t finish it too. Way too slow for me. And yes too gory for me too.
5. The Cure - Nice watch. A ‘different’ serial killer film. The psycho villan is genuienly commonplace and may be that’s why, more appealing. Again a visually splendid film. The hero is an AWESOME actor. I remember him from Babel. He played the father of the deaf-mute girl (the story set in japan). He was amazing in that one too. Reminded me a lot of Irrfan. The ability to act with merely his eyes.
Coming to the point of the post.
just finished watching Vittiro De Sica’s Classic the bicycle thief.
Don’t wanna see it again. It’s a very nice film …the kid is toooooo good…so is the dad.
but i wont see it again.
I don’t know why? may be due to the pathos in the film. It’s a rather ‘pitiful’ state that the characters are in. Somehow that doesn’t go down well for me. The well made favorite films that are a pain to watch. Not because the films are bad (far from it). But because they are sad films. Sad-melancholic films that are too painful to be seen again.
Still don’t get it? Let me give similar examples.
1. mahanadi - I think Oz perfectly described mahanadi somewhere. “Whenever anyone talks about mahanadi, I end up looking elsewhere, completely ignoring the topic.”
That’s what the film is for me. Brilliant film. A Must see. But I don’t think I will watch it again. At least not start to finish.
2. pather panchali - AGREED ..it’s one of the best film by Ray. Agreed it’s all neo realism. Agreed it’s a brilliant film too. Agreed all the “actors” are non actors. Agreed the film was funded by West Bengal Government. I agree with all the brilliant points in favour of the film. Am even agreeing to get my ass kicked in public.
To be really honest, I couldn’t finish this film too. Just too much pathos for me. Too much. May be i am too “soft” and urbane for the film. May be I cannot digest hard core brutal realistic films. May be I should stick to watching crime films.
By the way, without sounding arrogant, I do tend to agree with Truffaut - “I don’t want to see a movie of peasants eating with their hands”
Forgive me Ray lovers, may be i still need time to digest this film.
3. requiem for a dream- A brilliant film that I will reccomend to everyone, but may be i will not watch it again start to finish. Falls in the same category as that of brilliant films but can be seen only once. Watch it. You may love it. But you may not watch it again.
Hope you guys get what I’m trying to say.
Go on and list all your fav films that you CANNOT WATCH AGAIN for various reasons.
Oh and add Parutheveeran’s last 30 minutes to the aforementioned list too.
P.S - yet to see Phoonk and MMJ.
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someone quoting truffaut and watching ray finally….and for so long felt that everything that he hasnt seen or read or experienced is just pseudo…heheheh!!!
“Goopy gayen Bagha bayen” is my alltime favourite Indian fairy tale movie,
I dont like ‘Pather Panchali’,.
because it dipressed me ,and I dont like that
I think I quite agree with you with most of the films which I have watched.2001:Space Odyssey.Brilliant but major patience.
kk…
it has happened to me….
for instance i saw requiem for a dream but i cannot watch it again…..just cant …there are many other movies which are brilliant but cannot be seen again…
some of them are
21 grams
mystic river
raging bull
black ..[not brilliant but good]
I don’t think I can watch ‘Oldboy’ ever again. I felt as if somebody had kicked me in the balls when I watched it the first time. Great movie and all but can’t go through watching it again…
KK, sensitivity is an asset, liked the post.
Two films from Lars von Trier I can not watch again, entirely.
One “Dancer in the Dark”, a good film, Bjork is brilliant, but again..sad.. I would recommend others to watch it once.
Two “Dogville”, I can’t describe how I feel about this film but I just can’t stand it. Can anyone share opinion on ‘Dogville’.
1.One flew over Cuckoo’s Nest.
2.Requiem of a Dream
3.Million Dollar baby
4.se7en
Shwaas
makes it to the list of brilliant films I am not going to see again.
-n
Some brilliant movies, I can’t watch again:
Mouchette
La strada
Umberto D
Polanski’s The Tenant: I am a bachelor and I stay alone so there.
Pyaasa: brilliant but somwhere it drags a bit
Discreet charm of the bourgeoisieTarkaovsky’s The sacrifice
karthik,
You are bang on. Add Pithamagan to the list.
Actually, these go on to tell that how good these films were made.
“gandhi” and “matrix series”…somehow my second and all after that views failed..add all YRF movies after Silsila!1!!
The gut wrenching experience they provide at the end is one reason some of the movies prompt you to not watch them again.
However I am so allured to watch them because before the final 30 mins, there is a wonderful etching of endearing characters, sometimes goofy, sometimes poignant, and some times thrilling that sets up a feeling of tingling in your stomach before the tragedy befalls. Salangai Oli (Saagara Sangamam) - though there is a whole lot of lifewreck, the life that was has been shown to be so endearing that it cheers you up and makes you feel human as audience. Offcourse as humans we have to let it out sometimes - tough nuts included!! nice read KK!
@ Neeraj - AGREED! La Strada I would never be able to watch again! I still get shivers when I think about it. It’s just too full of pathos… Brilliant though…
One film that I cannot watch again is Lars Von trier’s Breaking the waves. Very disturbing, its definition of love. This guy is some depressive maniac himself. Has been in and out of depression himself. Guess thats why his films are so extreme.
Dogville - I have that film but have not been able to watch it. But will do so sometime. The whole movie is like a play - on stage; seems weird when I just ran through some scenes.
Requiem for a dream - havent even seen it completely the first time. Just takes me in a downward spiral. Very depressing.
But generally viewings for any good film for me don’t go beyond 2 or 3. I cant see a film again & again - it just ceases to mean what it does after a lot of viewings I feel.
KK
I would say most films I watch would be in that list.
Why waste your time watching the same movie again when there are so many more to watch :).
Only masterpieces I wanna watch again & again.
I disagree with IN MOOD FOR LOVE & 2046. I can watch them again & again.
But recently I saw two movies who took the life out of me.
SOLARIS- The russian original. It took me a whole week to finish it. I saw it in 8 attempts.
FOUNTAIN - I am unable to go beyond 30 mins. Unbearable so far.
BLACK - I lost all respect for SLB after watching this film… It was the worst nightmare I’ve ever experienced in a movie hall.
Good one.! For me, those kinds of movies would be:
1. Taxi Driver( I loved it. I adored it. I think a lot about it. But I cannot watch it again. It shakes me.)
2. Requiem for a Dream( Obviously!)
3. The Basketball Diaries ( Highly underrated movie n Leonardo’s performance)
4. Anjali
Folks,
how about the movies you would want to see it again and again? For the sheer reason it makes you happy?
For me, Pulp Fiction would top the list. Shawshank Redemption, Golmal.etc. Guys share your list regarding this too. It would be interesting.!
@ Gattu: :-)…True in a way. It was way way overboard. For me SLB’s best work is Khamoshi. Next comes HDDCS. None after that.
before I clicked on the post, the moment I saw the title, the word that flashed through my mind was Mahanadhi! And what do I see as the first example?
One of the experiences I feel on re-watching Mahanadhi is that irresistible urge to barge inside the television screen and warn Kamal, “dey ivan unnai ematharanda, pattanuthukku pogadheda” - and it is the fact that I cannot change his denoument and he will go through exactly what I saw him going through the last time I watched this movie, that despair I think is what puts us off seeing it again. Brilliance could have many hues but this is one aspect which is not probably discussed as a reason for brilliance ever - to me, however, this defines the brilliance of that movie.
The one that I want to see over and over..
ANDAZ APNA APNA… I am sure there should be unanimous agreement on this one.
PS: Main Teja hun kyunki mera naam bhi Teja hai
I don’t know how many of you have watched “Hard Candy” but I don’t think I’d be able to watch it once again.
Superlative performance by Ellen Page!
@ Shailesh: Ya. Have seen it. After the Juno effect, wanted to see more of EP’s films so saw Hard Candy but am not able to sit through ‘An American Crime’. Based on a true story its about how 2 girls were physically and mentally abused by the neighbour (played superbly and sadistically by Catherine Keener). One sister dies - Ellen Page. She’s so young but always chooses such offbeat films..This is a really disturbing movie.
1.Dr. Strangelove
2.Throne of Blood
3.Subarnarekha
btw
nice post kk
@KK - I don’t agree with your post at all… Not a single word and I will tell you why…
1. If you love a film, you will like to rewatch it…
2. If you found something difficult to watch and yet loved it, you will be sucked into it to watch it again, no matter how difficult it is… it’s like the child who has to watch an adult film because he knows somewhere inside he shouldn’t… I found the final montage of requiem for a dream such a difficult experience and today I watch that portion again and again… Because I love where Aronofsky takes the movie with that…
3. The joy of crying… That’s the reason you couldn’t sit through Pather Panchali… You didn’t get the ethos… writer Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay’s basic idea behind the story - the joy of shedding tears… being liberated! There are films I would watch to cry and feel light and happy and that’s why the most difficult films are must rewatches for me…
There was this Al Pacino Gene Hackman starrer Scarecrow. I loved the movie to no end but somehow can’t bring myself up to watch it again.
And then there was Majidi’s Children of Heaven. Another superb movie that I tried watching again a gazillion times but it was just too much for me. Everytime I start watching it, the film’s climax play in my mind and I end up in tears and the player ends up being powered off.
Movies I loved but will not watch again -
1) There Will Be Blood( Most Daniel Day Lewis films)
Das Boot
2) Tin Men
3) Infernal Affairs
4) Battle Royale
5) Man Bites Dog
6) Once
7) The Dark Knight
9) The Elephant Man
10)Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
There are more but I could remember only these….
@ Mainak,
Surprised to see ‘There will be Blood’ in your list! Though a sad movie mostly, it is more about the choices made by Danny’s character than a reflection of the sorrow associated with his choices! Again, a personal opinion!
Karthik.. Nice topic! I so agree.. I thought I am the only person who thought I cant see some masterpieces again. I totally agree that some of these depressing films cant be seen again.. Why?? Maybe there is some psychological reason to it. I disagree on Bicycle Thieves though. I can just keep watching that kid.. But yes, I cant do Pather Panchali again.. Or In The Mood For Love. Or Tarkovsy’s Mirror. Or Mother India.
I think it is because you know the journey now. You know the guy is going to lose his bicycle. You like the guy, you know, he is a nice man, you dont want anything nasty happening to him. You hate it. And most of these films end with the good guy not winning the way we as audience would want him to. So it pisses us off. And we dont want to see it again and again.
I may be wrong but this could be a possible reason.
Aah, see this is where reading the novel in the Bengali original sets you apart - you are able to see the film in its proper context and paradigm.
As a coming of age bildungsroman about a boy and how he engages with the world around him.
Pather Panchali is a marvellous film. Certainly not about peasants eating with their hands and the poverty isn’t even the point of the film (or the novel for that matter).
Apu’s family just happens to be poor - but the film is about Apu, and his bonds with his universe consisting of the family, the village, and then the mysterious world beyond.