Coming Distractions March 10th, 2009

Let the Right One In
Happy-Go-Lucky
Milk
Role Models
Nobel Son
Transporter 3
Rachel Getting Married
Cadillac Records
Synecdoche, New York
Battle in Seattle
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (Pyjamas?)

If you like Marcel Dzama's Saddest Ghost, you'll enjoy David Byrne's People Tree

The rumors around the movie block are that Cloverfield director Matt Reeves is going to direct an english language remake of Let the Right One In. Why? So absolutely unnecessary. In protest, let's celebrate a few of my favorite Scandinavian films:


Insomnia (1997): Also subject to an American remake starring Al Pacino and Robin Williams. It's fun to watch these two films back to back, because they are very similar except for two very telling cultural differences.



My Life As a Dog:Perfectly captures the innocence and magic of youth (those intangible qualities that so many others attempt to represent) while managing to be totally not nausea-inducing! (where so many of these other movies fail)




Show Me Love: My very favoritest movie about angsty teen lesbians. Not that I can think of many other angsty teen lesbian movies off the top of my head. you? Only campy classic But I'm a Cheerleader comes instantly to mind. Anyway, this movie's so great! I should re-watch it.



Together: Another movie (along with the one above) by Lukas Moodysson. It's great fun. And made me glad not to have found myself raising kids in a 70's commune. Though if I suddenly found myself raising kids in a 70's commune I'd be all like, "Where'd these kids come from? I don't remember giving birth to them." Then I would probably worry about my living situation later.


The Kingdom: I still can't believe I haven't watched the second season of this Danish tv show by Lars von Trier (box: "Like E.R. on acid") after the finale of the first season melted my brain. I'm not gonna spoil it by telling you what (or who?) a woman gives birth to, but just know that I want to tell you. Cause it's crazy. And cause my greatest pleasure in life comes from telling people the plots to books and movies, in great detail, even when they don't want me to.



Dancer in the Dark: I made my first boyfriend (shout-out to ABH, and thanks for the note a while back. I am glad we do not have Lipstick in the store so I won't end up subjecting myself to its extreme unsexiness. But I do think reading the synopsis about the brutality Margaux and Mariel Hemingway are subjected to there led me to rent Manhattan recently. A very fully-adult Woody Allen dating a very fully-teenage Mariel Hemingway certainly ain't the same as sexual assault, but it sure is weird.) watch this under the heading "If You Don't Get This Movie, You Don't Get Me." Yeah, I was a pretty angsty teenager myself. And it's still true for me about this movie. Life is hard, this movie is harder.


Breaking the Waves: More von Trier. Love is hard. But not my love for Emily Watson, that love is easy.



Seventh Seal: I haven't watch a lot of Bergman films. Maybe someone who is smarter than me can tell which ones I should watch. Or just give me plots synopses so I can feel like I already watched them.

Am I missing any great ones? There are still a bunch I haven't seen that I'd like to. Any suggestions of where to go next?