The (Eight) Hours

[bcholmes]

So, um, I watched The Hours this weekend. Four times. I hadn't seen it before.

Okay, one of those times I watched it with director's commentary on. Does that count as watching the movie?

It is an amazingly good film. I love the way the director composes scenes. And emties them of dialog. I think that this is something I consistently love in films: when films communicate really well without needing to put dialog in a character's mouth. A look. A motion. Nuance. A shot followed by a reverse shot. The 1951 scenes, in particular, are so pregnant with intuitive understanding. Of characters knowing things, and us, the audience, knowing that the character knows.

This film, like Magnolia and Crash and Solaris makes me look at scenes and say "how did the director do this? How did the director put this scene together?" Daldry is fascinating to listen to: the way he approaches a scene captures everything I love about film.

It's full of some really great performances: Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Stephen Dillane, and Ed Harris (who, I've come to believe, is one of the most versatile actors of the modern cinema). But what a directorial masterpiece!

Comments

[deepforestowl.livejournal.com]

The Hours is an amazing film. I love the editing especially in the beginning. Watch chap 1 and then the last 2 chaps of the DVD, the mirroring that goes on really blew me away. I used it in a class once and it was like I set off a nuke. They were blown away and they started talking and really getting into it. It was one of my better teaching ideas. Glad you liked the movie!

[kightp.livejournal.com]

A terrific film.

Now rent Sally Potter's Yes. Entirely different, but it evokes many of the same questions, and I suspect you'd enjoy it.

[bcholmes.livejournal.com]

I love Potter's work. Yes is one of those films I've been meaning to see for a while.

[ubiquity.livejournal.com]

*twinkles* Yes, that's an incredibly good movie.

[epi-lj.livejournal.com]

You know, I loved that movie, and I just got a Blockbuster gift certificate. Maybe I should pick it up.

(I also got Solaris for Christmas. Maybe I should re-watch that tomorrow morning.)

[bcholmes.livejournal.com]

Wow.

Wow.

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Isn't it just?

I revisited "Orlando" last week. It's as good as I remembered.

[bcholmes.livejournal.com]

The parking garage scene is especially powerful.

And I love the repeated use of cleaning staff who look at the camera. And Shirley Henderson. Wow.

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Did you watch the "making of" piece about the parking garage scene? Maybe it's my actor-ish side, but I found that peek into the process just fascinating.

And yeah, Shirley Henderson. So underrated.