TurquoiseB wrote: > --- In [email protected], Bhairitu <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >> BTW, I'm looking forward to David's latest film which should >> be opening here in the Bay Area in a couple of weeks. However >> yesterday I finally got to see "Babel" which I highly recommend. >> It is now #1 on my list of the best films of 2006 with "The >> Departed" moving to #2. I was always a big fan of "Amores >> Perros" by the same director and writer team >> though less impressed by their "21 Grams." >> > > I have to admit, having re-watched a couple of Lynch > films in the last few weeks, that I've realized that > I'm not a fan. So I probably won't spring for the new > one unless I find it on Limewire, even though I love > Laura Dern. > > I've been combing various people's Ten Best Films of > 2006 lists and downloading them from Limewire, and so > far have found a few real surprises. For whatever > reason, I had never been particularly impressed before > with Spike Lee's filmmaking, so I was a little resistant > to "Inside Man." Foolish me! It's one of the best caper > films I've ever seen. > > Thanks to whoever here recommended "Pan's Labyrinth," > also a winner. Babel is good, although a little heavy > for my tastes. I saw "The Departed" earlier and have > to admit I was underwhelmed...I'm not a fan. "Children > Of Men" still strikes me as interesting, although not > a classic. "Casino Royale" remains one of the most > *entertaining* movies I saw all year. > > Looking forward to watching "Volver," "Perfume: The Story > of a Murderer," "Little Children," "A Prairie Home > Companion," "The Fountain," "The Queen," and "Apocalypto," > all downloaded but so far unwatched. > > For those who speak French, the new film "Hors de prix," > starring Audrey Tautou, is a lightweight delight. Sort > of like "Pretty Woman," but with a cute twist. She is > gorgeous playing sexy (something she's never had to do > as an actress before), and Gad Elmaleh is the perfect > foil for her. Much commentary (although light, not > heavy commentary) on how the rich are different from > you and I. Much merriment as we get to see the differ- > ent looks of consternation on the face of the lovely > Ms. Tautou. Much wood as you get to see her dressed > up to the nines as a hooker. Last week was the Sundance Festival so the films we want to keep an eye on played there: http://www.sundancefilm.com/home/
This is that awful/wonderful time of the year when the film swamps us with too many films to watch while the rest of the year we get drek. "Little Miss Sunshine" which is out on DVD is a fun watch but not a awards contender. The writer had originally intended it to be a small film he would make for $2K with a mini-DV camera. Some of the films in theaters I can wait for on DVD especially with an upscaling player. When I was watching Babel I noticed some light macroblocking and sure enough they used an 2K digital interpositive so the actual resolution of the film was not that much more that you will get on an HD version. Comcast's prices on their latest OnDemand HD films are now $3.99 instead of $5.99 which makes them a bit more enticing. Most of these have been recently released on DVD. Fortunately most of the French films *do* make it here if at least on DVD. We also have what good television is on all converging on Sunday and Monday night. Tonight is another Heroes episode with runs against 24 and last week Heroes won in the ratings. Good thing I can record up to 4 HD streams around here. I like to space these out over the week. Speaking of HDTV, K Mart has a sale on a Toshiba 30" widescreen with HD tuner for $279. I did drop by the local store but they didn't have any out and their AV person told me there in back because there was no space to put any out and didn't know what model it was. If that is the Toshiba 30HF66 then it has both ATSC and QAM inputs. It is a heavy CRT set at 100 lbs but it is interesting to see sets break this price barrier. Of course there is a big push to sell sets for the "Stupor Bowl." :)
