Re: RARA-AVIS: Disappearance of the private film and the detective film in gener

From: Brian Thornton (bthorntonwriter@gmail.com)
Date: 16 Mar 2009

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    Mario wrote:

    "Let me follow up my own post to say that what I'm missing in most if not all American films of recent years is tranquility, deliberateness. It looks like they are trying to appeal to impressionable teenagers with a lot of gimmicks, explosions, shooting and noise. Hollywood needs to calm down. They're mostly hysterical."

    I refer the list back to the review I did of HOLLYWOODLAND a couple of years back when Jack Bludis and I were debating whether or not it was a "good" film. For my money, Hollywood has not produced its equal since its release
    (although another film with which Ben Affleck is associated, GONE, BABY GONE, is also a fine film in its own way). The link to what I said can be found here:

    http://www.miskatonic.org/rara-avis/archives/200609/0260.html

    Here's the relevant portion (from the last part of my post):

    "And in the end, that's what really made this movie for me. I came away from it with the right combination of questions answered and unanswered, and I've been mulling it over in the two days since I went to see it, and have become even more convinced that in this age of hit-you-over-the-head entertainment, HOLLYWOODLAND is a skilled, ultimately satisfying, vehicle for the sort of cautionary tale about Southern California in general, and the entertaiment world (and the excesses of fame) in particular, that Chandler's THE LONG GOODBYE was when it was first published during the mid-fifties.'

    "And it doesn't have to hit you in the face with a chain to do it."

    I would welcome more movies like this, and based on his words above, so would Mario.

    If you haven't watched it, treat yourself. I'd think most of the Rare Birds here would enjoy it.

    All the Best-

    Brian

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