404 Film Society

Everything Film

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Kiss Kiss Bang Bang 2005- Movies You Missed#6

Maybe you like clever narration that breaks the forth wall? Possibly you like  interesting mystery stories with a bit of action? Perhaps you just like seeing Robert Downey Jr. get hurt a lot? If so this one is for you!

Harry Lockhart (Robert Downey Jr.) is possibly the worst slash luckiest thief ever. After a botched robbery in New York his partner in crime is shot and he runs from the cops strait into an audition room. Damn it if the producer and casting director don't think he's doing a method bit and hire him for the role on the spot. After being flown out to L.A. he is paired up with Gay Perry (played by Val Kilmer), a detective to shadow in preparation for his upcoming role. Suddenly Downey's character who's luck was on the upswing until this point stumbles across a murder and that's all I'm going to say about the plot.Go watch the movie.

Val Kilmer plays maybe the most layered and intelligent gay character I've seen in a film in a long while. It has some clever jabs at the entertainment industry. It might be one of my favorite movies to quote. The pace is quick and it might take you two watches to catch everything, but that's part of the fun. If I had to sum this movie up, and I do because this is the end, I'd say this movie is about friendship.

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Two aliens walk into a diner. Okay, this one might be a bit out there, but stay with me a minute. After years of study these astronauts from above discover a strange and disturbing truth. They are all made of meat. Every earthling from the tops of their heads to the soles of their feet. All meat. They talk by flapping their meat and even think with meat. Should we let them know their not alone?

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The "Before Trilogy" 1995-2013- Movies You Missed#5

Richard Linklater plays one hell of a long game. His newest film "Boyhood" was shot over 12 years and follows a boy through the trials and tribulations of growing up. This is nothing though compared to His "Before Trilogy". "Before Sunrise", "Before Sunset" and "Before Midnight" were shot over the course of 18 years. With a minimalist storyline it follows a couple from the first time they meet up through about a decade of marriage. Each of the three are more or less an "a day in the life" story with a huge emphasis on the dialog. If you are looking for a movie with car chases, nudity and overly stylized filmmaking wait for my next Movies You Missed (It's going to be cool; I promise). If, however, you want a decent romance story that is not something that was extruded from a hollywood script factory or a beautiful example of character development check this one out. Just be sure to watch them at least a week apart. Really though, you're cheating yourself if you watch them back to back.

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SHORT OF THE WEEK #5

Synesthesia is a neurological phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway.People who report such experiences are known as synesthetes. Watching this film is sort of like a synesthete trying to explain the condition to someone who does not share the same nero condition. Like trying to explain a color to someone who is colorblind. Most of us may never be able to taste a sound or smell a color, but this short gives us an interesting look into someone else's reality.

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Tucker and Dale vs. Evil 2010- Movies You Missed#4

We swear this is not what it looks like. One of my favorite contemporary entries in the comedy horror genre. Tucker and Dale are two good, if not slow guys who when you get to know them could never be mistaken for serial killers. Unfortunately for them the college kids who go into the woods to do what all college kids do in horror movies don't take the time to really talk to them. This all goes south when Tucker and Dale save one of the kids from drowning and is accused of kidnapping. Seriously, no good deed goes unpunished. This one is for anyone who loves horror movie tropes. I want so badly for this one to be a new cult classic and I think it could be. So lets all gather a few friends and watch it.

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SHORT OF THE WEEK #4

Not your typical sex scene. In most Hollywood depictions of sex everything is perfect. Hollywood is a liar full of lies. In reality, or at least in my experience you have to work with the other person to make it go well. A combination of funny and awkward with an emphasis on awkward "How I Met Your Father" is the most honest depiction of a couples first time I have ever seen. We sympathize because we have all had bad sex; but it makes us feel better because we know it has never been that bad. Obviously this one is NSFW so don't blame me if you get in trouble for watching this in the office.

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Sound counts! It does not matter how clear and beautiful your image is if the sound is poorly done. Jeff Beal speaks on the composition of the "House of Cards" season one and two theme songs. It truly is an amazing collage of noises that creates this cinematic sound well worth a study.

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Brick 2005- Movies You Missed#3

Tell me if anything catches. This film starts, as many of it's ilk do, at the end. A drug deal, missing money and a dead girl. What sets this one apart is not the who or when, but the where. Taking place in and around a high school this true blue noir flick feels right. After all the only place I've ever felt the level of melodrama native to this genre was in high school. Starring a young Joseph Gordon-Levitt we follow Brendan as he looks for whomever it was that put his ex in front of the gun. Shot on 35mm this small film with a huge kick at the end delivers.

As an aside, Director Rian Johnson is one of my current favorites out there right now. Following up Brick with "The Brothers Bloom" and "Looper" he's one to follow.

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SHORT OF THE WEEK #3

Ultimately, a story of redemption. Death to the Tinman is an inspiration to low budget filmmakers everywhere. With a combination of rear projection, DIY costumes and a committed, but small cast this one shows us what one can do on a shoe string budget. Shot on B&W 16mm film stock it almost resembles a 70's No Wave flick. Take some time and watch it.

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Moon 2009- Movies You Missed#2

Honestly the less I say about this one the better. Starring Sam Rockwell as an astronaut and Kevin Spacey as his life support system (GERTY) this is one of my favorite sci-fi flicks in years. Using practical models for shots of the lunar surface it calls back to the classics of it’s genre. The moonbase it self feels more "Alien" than "A Space Odyssey 2001". Minimalist at its core it’s worth a watch or two.

Fun fact: It was directed by David Bowie’s son.

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SHORT OF THE WEEK #2

This one has been a personal favorite for a while now. Using a series of vignettes it strings together visual synonyms from "Play" to "Space". Clever and well edited.

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Carnage 2011-Movies You Missed#1

Based on the  Tony Award winning play "God of Carnage", the movie "Carnage" is great. It stars Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz and John C. Reilly who play the parents of two boys in order to resolve a fight in the park where one of the children hit the other with a stick. What starts out as a mild comedy gradually becomes a claustrophobic character driven drama as time goes on. Grossing only $2.5M state side and $25M internationally it just barely broke it's budget of $25M. It is a slow burn worth a watch.

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SHORT OF THE WEEK #1

A strong start. Noir to it’s bones. As far as adaptations go this short film hits all the right marks.