Seen and not seen's, recommendations and queries on top films in general.

[absurdexposition]

Dang, sad to hear that about Crimes of the Future. I haven't liked Cronenberg's films from this millennium much and was hoping it'd be a return to form, so to say.

It is. I loved it. I've seen it twice at the theatre and would go back again. Not only is horny Cronenberg back, but ideas Cronenberg is back. It traces the line from eXistenZ and Crash through to Dead Ringers and all the way back to his original Crimes of the Future. Inverse to Atrophist, it's actually near the top of the Cronenberg pile for me.

[NerveGas]

I agree. Great movie. Seems like a lot of people expected body horror. With this one you get a lot of body, but not so much horror. I would agree in many ways it’s a return to form, but by no means a rehash of ideas or some nostalgia ploy. I have a ton of thoughts about this film, but will keep it brief. Went into it with no knowledge of the plot, so perhaps that shaped my opinion a bit, but I felt like it went in a very unexpected direction much to my personal benefit.

[aububs]

i thought it was really boring

haven't really liked a cronenberg film in about 25 years

[Atrophist]

I’ve no desire or intention to start an argument over this (it’s just movie), but imho as an artist you can’t really return to form, certainly not the form you were in 25+ years ago. Nor is it necessary in Cronenberg’s case as he’s never really stopped maturing, developing, and again imho, improving as an artist. I get that pushing 80 he’d wish to revisit his old haunts for a nostalgia trip (and no, ”surgery as sex” is not a major innovation over, say, ”car crashes as sex”). Still, I hope his next film(s) will break new ground again.

I actually found the plotline about digesting plastic much more interesting. But even that was clumsily handled. I mean for a regular person, swallowing a piece of plastic is not a great idea, but it won’t cause you to immediately start vomiting blue slime and then die. Or were those purple bars the ”industrial waste” the character referred to at some point? Who knows.

But anyway, I’m glad others enjoyed it more than I did. And as a big fan, I’d still prefer a below-average Cronenberg film over almost anything else. I certainly hope he still has a few films in him and am looking forward to Shrouds.

[NerveGas]

I’ve no desire or intention to start an argument over this (it’s just movie), but imho as an artist you can’t really return to form, certainly not the form you were in 25+ years ago.

I would agree with this. For most part I use the phrase because I see what others are referring to even if I don’t fully agree. At the end of the day I think it’s mostly just used as shorthand for “there are weird bodily mutations and perverted sex in this film”. I feel like I would like the film a lot less if it was just trying to hit the right Cronenberg notes and do nothing else. It had enough familiarity to feel like some of his old school elements had returned, but like I said not in the way of simple rehash. Regardless of the more trademark stuff I just honestly thought the plot was great. Loved the ending as well. As far as the “just a movie” comment… it’s all just movies,  just noise, just art, etc. And these are all just opinions. I’m actually glad to hear from people who didn’t enjoy it. Makes me consider and reflect on what I did enjoy about it.

[AKTI Records]

Got MUBI for myself like two weeks ago and damn I`ve been enjoying cinema.

First Cow was ok; fun, good looking and all - bit too hipster goofball feel good tale for my taste. After a friends recomendation I watched movie called Mysterious Skin which was more or less great, good acting, semi psychedelic and semi disturbing erotic scenes... Beautiful soundtrack by Harold Budd. Now before bed going to lurk Larry Clarks Bully (2001)... Loved Kids so I have high expectations about this one!

[MHK]

Got MUBI for myself like two weeks ago and damn I`ve been enjoying cinema.

MUBI is the best thing to happen in the world of streaming services ever!

[Balor/SS1535]

Patriotism: It turns out that Yukio Mishima's short film has been available on Youtube, so I decided to watch it earlier today.  It is interesting for a variety of reasons, but I especially appreciated the Noh set design and general minimalism pervading the entire film.  In regards to its content, I think it is (aside from the short story it is based on) closest to Runaway Horses and The Decay of the Angel (for its fascinating fade-out into a Zen rock garden in the final scene).  It is definitely worth the half hour!

[impulse manslaughter]

Eastern Promises is the last Cronenberg I watched. I grew up watching stuff like The Fly, Scanners and Videodrome with my friends. Discovering these "cult-movies" on the shelves of our local video rental place was like finding a portal to another dimension. In hindsight the ideas are better than the execution. A lot of it feels really outdated also. The only ones I still really like and still own on dvd are Rabid, The Fly and Dead Ringers.

[Atrophist]

It’s totally true that Cronenberg’s films don’t seem to age very well. But such is your lot if you want to be avant-garde: misunderstood at first, forgotten later. That surely won’t unfamiliar to many of us here either, eh? ;)

[Balor/SS1535]

The only one I have see is The Fly, but I thought it aged extremely well.  The effects still blow any CGI away for me.

[AdamLehrerImageMaker]

I wrote about Crimes of the Future here: https://safetypropaganda.substack.com/p/10-observations-on-crimes-of-the

Overall, I thought it was pretty good. Honestly, I was very interested in Cronenberg's 2000s work, seeing how his aesthetic would, for example, operate in crime genre cinema with the excellent Eastern Promises and A History of Violence. I also think Maps to the Stars, his Hollywood satire written by the great author Bruce Wagner, was among the most singularly genius works of his career (and I consider Dead Ringers to be my second favorite film ever made). A Hollywood satire as repulsive and cutting as Nathaniel West's Day of the Locus (and John Scheslinger's masterful adaptation of it) or Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon.

Crimes to the Future is a return to form, and was certainly interesting visually and philosophically. I'm more curious to see what the new couple will look like.

I agree. Great movie. Seems like a lot of people expected body horror. With this one you get a lot of body, but not so much horror. I would agree in many ways it’s a return to form, but by no means a rehash of ideas or some nostalgia ploy. I have a ton of thoughts about this film, but will keep it brief. Went into it with no knowledge of the plot, so perhaps that shaped my opinion a bit, but I felt like it went in a very unexpected direction much to my personal benefit.

[Manhog_84]

Christian Tafdrup's Speak No Evil is easily the best film of the year for me. I almost passed it because the plot didn't seem that interesting. This film is not meant to be an entertaining or escapist horror, but it cleverly manipulates viewer's feelings and when the credits rolled, I was genuinely upset of what I just saw. George Sluizer's Spoorloos left me with a similar feeling when I saw it years ago. All the small details seem more disturbing when you know the ending. It's best to see without watching the trailer or knowing too much. Great use of music as well.

I also went to see Terrifier 2 at the local movie festival. Everyone's praising it but it's boring as fuck. Art the Clown would be a great villain, but I feel it's wasted in this franchise. The comic book violence doesn't work very well because there is no build-up, no tension, no characters, shitty plot and overall bad direction and the movie is one hour too long.

[hollowserpenttooth]

Christian Tafdrup's Speak No Evil is easily the best film of the year for me. I almost passed it because the plot didn't seem that interesting. This film is not meant to be an entertaining or escapist horror, but it cleverly manipulates viewer's feelings and when the credits rolled, I was genuinely upset of what I just saw. George Sluizer's Spoorloos left me with a similar feeling when I saw it years ago. All the small details seem more disturbing when you know the ending. It's best to see without watching the trailer or knowing too much. Great use of music as well.

Thanks for the heads up on this. Thoroughly enjoyed it and went in completely unaware of what to expect. Great flick. Unsettling.

[AdamLehrerImageMaker]

Blonde, Andrew Dominik's Marilyn Monroe "biopic" cum theory fictional horror, is the cinematic masterpiece of the decade. Watch it with an open mind.

Damien Leone's Terrifier 2, Gaspar Noe's Vortex, and Todd Fields' Tarr are all masterpieces as well.

It's been a very exciting year for film, against all odds.