I watched two movies this weekend, lying in a sleep deprived half state, trying to clear my head a bit from the relentless photo editing. First up was The Mist, which I’m not sure if it has been released in SA yet, but our video shop has this TBYB section where stuff that has not yet hit the screens is often for rent.

The movie started off innocently enough with the usual, army stuffs up, opens a portal into another dimension, bad critters come through, humans get eaten, that is the standard fare for this kind of date night horror. Bubble gum for the brain and eyes, just what the doctor ordered. Then the twist, and not what you expect either; dark, post-existentialist, psycho drama that leaves you feeling drained, slightly twisted and very much wondering why. I’m not sure why anyone would want to watch this.

Desperate for something a bit happier, we put on I’m Not There, the Bob Dylan movie with the six different people playing him. I went through a big Bob Dylan phase when I was in my teens. This was beautifully shot, long, ambitious, complex meander through I’m not sure what. The only person who looked like Robert was Cate Blanchett, who was smoking, literally and figuratively, in the role. It was the kind of movie that I would have loved ten years ago, today it was eye candy. If you’re a photographer, or you just like to shoot, highly recommended. Edward Lachman, simply kicks ass as a cinematographer.

“For a scene showing young Robbie and Claire in a New York diner, Lachman framed the two so that they didn’t always seem to be the subject of their own shots; he accomplished this effect by using a mirror behind the actors, deliberately disorienting the viewer and introducing shifts in screen direction that would create an awkwardness that reflected the characters’ emotions.” from American Cinematographer

This entry was posted Wednesday, July 9th, 2008 at 9:02 pm and is filed under Opinion, films, update.