Alkajazz

Thx-1138

jackhammer

I thought I would post a little more in depth on this film as it justify's more than a quick sentence.

Kissed is a film that upon first glance seems reprehensible. It's a film about necrophilia. For the unitiated that is sleeping with the dead. However Kissed is far from a schlocky piece of exploitation.

It is a daring and bold piece of work that despite it's seemingly lurid subject matter, remains intimate and enlightening.

The first time I saw this film was upon it's release in the mid 90's and I was blown away by the complexities that the film was presenting. The physical connotations of the interaction could easily descend into farce or indeed; repulsion. Yet the direction is subtle, the acting so sincere and the soundtrack so succinct, that you become embroiled within it's spell.

Kissed is a metaphor. It embraces acceptance, individuality, need, want, social inadequacy, loneliness and love with a deceptively easy stroke. The interaction between two disparate physical states is handled with aplomb and exquisite tenderness.

The film's climax can be spotted a mile away, yet it is handled so well that you can forgive it's naiveity. Finally it was one of the first films (aside from the usual musical and/or music video) that used music as a tool to enhance the narrative and atmosphere for dramatic and not commercial effect.

Here is the trailer if any of you are brave enough to take it on:

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Obdurate

Ivan's Childhood.

Tarkovsky, can you make a film that isn't brilliant and beautiful? I don't think you can, you ****er.

The political protest starts with the opening Mosfilms logo. Usually there is heroic music playing over statuettes of typical communist symbols, but the movie begins with a coo-cooing sound and Tarkovsky puts that over the symbols instead of the normal music.

From there, we see the horrors of war without seeing any real violence. We only see the enemies (the Germans, in a WWII setting) in one scene, where we see a few soldiers walking through water. How does Tarkovsky show us the horrors, then? Well, we see the environment, which is what he excels at because he loves long atmospheric shots and his cinematography is without equal. The biggest protest of war is a rather simple image, but very affective. I'd like to show it but some might consister it a spoiler.

The movie follows a kid named Ivan, who insists on being on the front line for the Soviet Army, for reasons you find out as you watch it. His story is told in fractured segments (images of beauty, then the brutality of war, for example).

The ending is crippling but not totally unexpected. I think that's the point, though.

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Will post for food.

sweet_nothing

meh

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jackhammer

I hated High Fidelity. I would presume I am in the minority.

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sweet_nothing

I sorta made myself sit through it. It was a comedy without the jokes, also it was pretty boring. I wouldnt recommend it to anyone.

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Wifey Boozer

I love High Fidelity

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... Stalin had a FANTASTIC moustache.

Formerly known as the Prime Minister of Spain.

[backintheubbr]

jackhammer

If the film setting stayed in the UK then it may have helped me appreciate it a lot more.

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Wifey Boozer

I've also read the book, and enjoyed it. I thought the style of the movie was different from the book, but I thought the movie had more edge as a result of that.

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... Stalin had a FANTASTIC moustache.

Formerly known as the Prime Minister of Spain.

[backintheubbr]

Obdurate

Agreed. Very funny, very smart. It's nice how it's so focused on music but the theme running through it is heart break, really. Kind of relates to how many relationship songs are in music.

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Will post for food.