Koala

6y

"Radical experiment from Hellman, taking the makings of a traditional Western and repurposing them into a cocktail that’s as unexpected as it is intoxicating: One-part existential descent into inevitable desperation; one-part portrait of the destructive wingspan of revenge; and one-part slow dismantling of Equipoise Incarnate. The resulting highball is jarring in the haze of surface-level expectations: A man of supreme levelheadedness and composure being constantly tested by an invalid partner, an illogical woman, and an enigmatic lunatic, marching deeper and deeper into the unforgiving desert. Assumptions are formulated, tensions are invariably high - ”I’m gonna blow your face off” - and as the sun gets hotter and the landscapes grow oppressively wider, the story transitions its literal, external search to one of figurative introspection, the culmination of which, paradoxically, is signposted by something that works in both a literal and figurative sense: That Coign is Willett’s brother operates as a thread of possible motive for seventy-some minutes until the final three, where the revelation that he’s an identical twin dissects the motif into not just a literal one of genealogical preservation, but a figurative one wherein Willet and Coign represent a bifurcation of human nature, the “good” and the “bad,” so to speak, the charitable crossed with the wicked, and, in several ways, Mr. Gashade has essentially been hunting for himself. At the end, who wins and who loses, and what was all of this for? Not much, sadly, and the film’s dismal non-resolution might be off-putting to some, but I find the subversive fruitlessness both thrillingly perverse and strikingly “real” in its theoretical positing. Formally, things don’t get much better: The early shot of Coley traversing the background as the camera orbits Willet’s face is an early indication that Hellman is in absolute control, the discordant piano score hinting that this won’t be your typical Western. There’s another instance where Willet is peering at a faraway plateau and gets momentarily distracted by a squawking bird in the sky, only to glace back and see a full silhouette standing there. The film kind of snuck up on me that way; I hadn’t realized what an abstract meditation it was until it was too late—that’s precisely when I fell in love."

• A Broski

Koala

6y

Like I said the craft is there, very clearly. its bursting with style in every shot. If your looking at visuals alone OUATITW is clearly better. But as a whole The Shooting is superior in its experimentation with the genre, pushing it in a direction that most westerns dared not go. The fact it was done on a shoe string budget is all the more impressive.

Fella

6y

@Elric

So yeah Solaris is my least favorite Tark so far, but it’s still really good.

https://letterboxd.com/hellofidelio/film/solaris/

Elric

6y

It's not only visuals broski and if you didn't finish it I don't expect you to pick up on the deeper themes at play.

Also it has one of the most deadpan hilarious scripts, every line feels iconic to me.

Koala

6y

I finished it today.. just for you broski Yes its a classic but it didn't meet that mark for me. 3.5/5 which is really good but I had higher expectations.

I liked Henry Fonda's character the most. The Good, Bad, and Ugly remains Leone's classic in my books.

and yes I would still take The Shooting over OUATITW

Elric

6y

Yap such underwhelm

That one library conversation is pretty heavy but otherwise :keefnah:

Elric

6y

Fair enough the opulent pacing isn't for everybody

Koala

6y

@rise_zero

Yall gotta get that dumb ass Bill de Blasio outta office.. Fool is worried about cutting police funds and painting BLM in front of Trump tower, meanwhile a 1 year old is killed by gunfire after dudes open fire at a midnight BBQ

SANTI

6y

Can y’all give me some must see movies

LuJo

6y

Watching A Fistful of Dollars and Yojimbo back to back is beautiful tbh

SANTI

6y

Non Netflix edition

Very Based

6y

Do The Right Thing
Taste of Cherry
Breaking The Waves
Blade Runner
Cache

SANTI

6y

2049 or OG?

SANTI

6y

2049 or OG?

Bizzle

6y

@Galaxy you listened to any Drones albums yet broski? Gala Mill gunna be very high on my 2000s list

Galaxy de list mon

6y

I have not