Man With a Movie Camera this week (that’s what Netflix calls it, where it’s available for streaming).  Next week is The Searchers.  As always, follow along on our iCheckMovies list, and be sure to let us know how you’d rank the movies in the comments below.

Man With a Movie Camera – January 8, 1929

Director: Dziga Vertov
Writers: Dziga Vertov
Cinematography: Mikhail Kaufman

The course of the conversation:

We actually watched a silent movie we said we’d watch.

Nathaniel makes a reference from The Ring.  Jonathan doesn’t get it.

Michael quotes Nietzsche and stares into the abyss.

Jonathan is still processing.

Let’s define our terms.

Scare quotes!

A movie doesn’t need to protest to be political.

The movie has an agenda, but it feels subtle.

So much of the movie feels modern, but at the time, Vertov put out a month-long disclaimer to warn the audience that things were going to get weird.

The host’s lack of knowledge becomes an issue with understanding this film.

Quentin Tarantino would love this movie.

Appreciation for this film may be lost as we lose the physical process of moviemaking.

Live birth, side-boob, front-boob, dancing crawfish.

These are just people, living their lives, and how would that have appeared to people afraid of the Commies?

Is this movie sugar-coating Stalinist Russia, or successfully giving a taste of a day-in-the-life despite what bad things might’ve been going on?

From a social point of view, we’re glad this movie exists.

Nathaniel made his decision easily.  Michael had trouble, but didn’t rank it high.  Jonathan feels there’s a lot of technique to deconstruct and learn from.

Your hosts announce their next movie, The Searchers, with confidence, because they’re pulling a double-feature week.

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Deus Ex: The Eyeborg Documentary

Beyond the Game Documentary

The nearly-a-month of comedy continues!

Week 2: The Comedians of Comedy

This documentary follows the revolutionary comedy tour by Patton Oswalt, Brian Posehn, Maria Bamford and Zach Galifianakis that eschewed regular comedy clubs and instead played in indie concert venues from 2004. The film includes both footage from each of the comedian’s sets, scenes on the road of the group hanging out and joking together, and the occasional vignette shot by the comedians themselves just for shits and giggles.

I really enjoyed this film– probably the least brilliant and creative people involved in the film are the actual filmmakers themselves. Seeing these comedians in their element, still before half of them made it to stardom, is exciting– and it’s a joy to get to hang out with them in the behind the scenes footage. Zach Galifianakis steals the show– its impossible to tell if he’s being himself or playing a character for the camera, but either way, his ever-so-slighly insane genius is in full display.

The documentary is available through Netflix Instant Streaming.

You have no excuse!

Enjoy!

I’ve got three weeks of comedy for you!  A couple of documentaries, and then a complete series to round out the list.

Week 1: Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work

This is a fantastic documentary about the famous comedienne, who, at the age of 75, is still going strong. Being the youthful tot that I am, I only knew Joan Rivers as an uninteresting talk show host and a really awkward commentator on Oscar night, it’s incredible to see her open up into an incredibly funny, driven, abrasive personality. In the course of the film we see her put on a play, compete on “Celebrity Apprentice”, publish her new book, and continually complain about her lack of work. It’s inspiring to see her drive, and uplifting at the end.

And also, she’s really hilarious.

The documentary is available on Netflix Instant Streaming.

You have no excuse!

Enjoy!

Robin Williams interviews Harlan “I have no mouth and I must scream!” Ellison. Nuff said.

…okay, there are also some other talking heads (including BSG’s Ron Moore and Neil Gaiman!), but Harlan Ellison by himself is so inherently amusing and enjoyable in his sheer curmudgeonliness, he supplies the entertainment almost single-handedly. Beyond that, the glimpse into the mind of someone so razor sharp, even at 80, so brilliant and yet so incredibly human and vulnerable is one that will, for a few moments, touch you deeply and profoundly. There are few films and fewer individuals who can be both utterly innocent and utterly profane in, if not the same moment, then just a blink between.

You have no excuse. Enjoy!