Quote:
Originally Posted by Frownland
While I do think it a more matured style, Zodiac had cryptic murders, not gruesome ones, so they lacked that gruesome element. And yes, you're being reductionist to the point where I think you missed a good deal of the film.
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To be fair, it's a million years since I watched Seven. Maybe so long ago that it doesn't make much sense for me to insist on my position too hard. So that's a dilemma: I would have to see it again to see if I still hold the same view of it, but on the other hand I really don't want to watch it again.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Frownland
You have pretty clear cut boundaries for what movies should do and be and I think that turns you away from a lot of great art.
And No Country for Old Men is mucho better.
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I've watched god knows how many movies of every conceivable type over the years and, yes, I've started shying away from some types of movies - instead putting my focus on the one's I expect greater things from.
I'd say most of my beefs with Seven have to do with what's really just my beef with the horror genre.
I do strongly prefer movies that focus on character development above all else. Strong style is a big bonus too, but that depends on what the theme and visual subject matter is.
I'm not entirely sure I agree with you that I'm too limited in some ways, but I'm willing to consider it. Take the Steve McQueen (the director, not the actor) movie Hunger, for example. It's essentially a very literal, feature length visual exploration of the physical decay and suffering of a man on hunger strike. It's tough to watch, and I suppose the viewer is intended to somehow connect with the reality of the situation on some deeper level, but I was really missing some more depth in a perhaps more conventional way. The only scene I truly liked was the one where the hunger striking prisoner speaks at length with a visitor in one long, single-shot scene. The bed ridden suffering eventually just felt like it was beating me over the head with how terrible everything about the situation is. I think you'd like the movie, and that's not some snarky put-down. I hated it.
But no, art doesn't have to be pretty and it doesn't have to be easy. I like plenty of movies that are a tough watch, but then they tend to be character oriented. This one for example:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2178941/
East Germany, totalitarianism, etc. Pretty depressing movie, but good.