Mario Taboada (matrxtech@yahoo.com)
Sun, 26 Dec 1999 12:35:40 -0800 (PST)
Mark (who, politely, did not throw tomatoes):
<<I agree with you that films with slow builds have
been left by the wayside and are alien to most contemporary
viewers.>>
Yes, and besides, the viewer is no longer assumed to be able
to fill in the blanks. Everything is underlined and
overshouted. I am speaking in general, and mainly about
Hollywood films, although Europe is rapidly adopting the same
crass approach.
I always watch films with total concentration on the visual,
filing away certain images as landmarks. In many recent
films, the images go by too fast for them to sink in. It's
the opposite extreme of Tarkovsky or Bresson (some Bresson).
Film is losing the power of the image, just when it's easier
than ever to make great images. It's ironic. So many words
and loud sounds, so little content.
Rant over. I am reading Arthur Lyons's P.I.novel
_False Pretenses_ (1994), an effective example of the
traditional hardboiled novel, with a great plot and gritty
L.A. atmosphere. It's a tightly written, nasty little package
that does its job with precision and flair. This is one that,
mysteriously, had been sitting in my shelf for four years. I
recommend it, if it's still available (I doubt it).
Regards and a great year to all raravians and their
families.
===== Mario Taboada
"To a mouse, cheese is cheese: that is why mousetraps work."
(Unattributed)
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