I'm glad to see julien donkey-boy and Three Kings finally make someone's
list.
Over the past few days, I looked forward to reading the "top #"
album lists. I was impressed by the effort people made to make sure that
their list was well-thought out and by extention profound. However, 1999
has been a great year in film. And to that point, 1999 would have been a
great year in film, even if American Beauty had remained a spec script in
S, K or G's desk.
But, I also understand that film is difffent from music. There is no MP3
for The Limey. And Amazon cannot ship you The War Zone. Magic Johnson's
movie chain will not be picking up All About My Mother. Film
descriminates against many people in this country, partly becuase many
people in this country descriminate against film.
And I don't blame them.
Hell, I descriminate aginst film. That is, film in the theater.
A confession: I did not spend $9.00 to see Phat Beach in theatrical
release.
I wait 'till video and HBO to take in Universal Soldier: The Return with
a loved one.
Independent, or quasi-independent or faux-independent or even "artsy"
films cannot expect to be distributed to all parts of the country in a
theatrical release. So, many people on this list, just may not be aware
of a film until it hits video. And there's nothing wrong with that. That
may be the only reason some pople have seen Red Rock West or the Last
Seduction or any other Dahl film.
'Cause I really looked forward to reading those album lists. And the depth
of some of those write-ups made me want to fork over some bread for an
album in which someone else believed. I just wanted to write in and say
that there is so much film worth considering for a "best of" playing right
now only in major cities, that one understands that the books for 1999 are
far from being closed, Or at least until- as some have pointed out-
Magnolia hits the screens or Titus on Christmas Day.
Best,
Cutty
PS If you have not heard anything about a movie called The Beach. Do not
attempt to learn anything. Go read The Beach by Alex Garland. I don't care
if the movie is a masterpiece, the book is an experience that should not
be tainted by the film. You deserve to hear these characters speak from
the page, and to see what they see in your mind's eye. Don't allow an
actor to take the experience away from you, while you still have the
chance to go off to Thailand by yourself and visit the beach. I'm not
saying that book to film is a bad thing. But, look at it this way before
Fight Club came out I knew who Tyler Durden was, and he wasn't Brad Pitt.
_____________________________________________________________________________
"Not strong, only agressive.
Not free, only licensed.
Not compassionate, only polite."
-Black Star
