<Rayoflight>

Thanks for the heads up on <Candy>! This is the movie you mean, right?

I can not think of anyone else writing a post like this at CG.

On another note, I hope your stay back home in Canada was a pleasant and satisfying one, or maybe you are glad to be back in S. Korea. -- anyways, all the best from me. After barging in at Howard's the other day I thought it ought be appropriate to drop a line.

A movie tip for you from this side of the pond might be:

Cold In July

Howdy <Niels>!

I doubt anyone, including the host <Martinez>, will regard your fine contribution to be "barging in" on a discussion. Rather, you helped keep it going so that now our mutual friend <Lee> knows more about how do "do the links" than I do.

I did indeed see <Cold in July>, but I didn't like it as much as you did. Decent cast and screenplay, but I found the story to be too predictable to get really engaged.

On the other hand, I may have been in the wrong mood for this kind of movie when I watched it.

lol <Matt>. If it's really him, we'll likely know soon enough.

I'm kind of sad that Jake Gyllenhaal hasn't gotten much recognition from his creepy portrayal in "Nightcrawler." He is so good!

<Jess> - and you are right, the mood and attention you have at the moment of watching, largely determines the perception and how a film stays, or does not stay, with you.

But the twist of our lead saving the person who was threatening his kid after he (Shepard) was left half dead on the tracks by the corrupt police, and in effect teaming up with Shepard to find out if his son was involved in the torture and killing of women, wasn't one I saw coming from a mile.

Best line in the movie:

Shepard, after finding out about his son and handgun practicing:

"If a dog turns bad, starts injuring people, you either chain him up, or put him down, don't ya? -- Well, I can't very well chain him up, now can I?"

Our protagonist's heart skipped a beat.. "You are not seriously considering killing your son...?"

It's an adaptation from a crime novel by Joe R. Lansdale, and the story is quite rich, dark, and complex, imo.

In these dark winter months I do watch a lot of films, and most disappoint, I must say, especially when you are really up for it, because of the high ratings as well, and then it's like a free falling object sometimes, like that latest highly acclaimed Jake Gyllenhaal film...

I thought it was really bad.

Actually I was rather irritated by Gyllenhaal's "acting" in 'Nightcrawler', while you are full of praise...

<Yet another movie with JG employing the practice of 'method' acting, you almost feel like he's saying to himself: 'move here, say this, smirk, move head weirdly, repeat'.

See Prisoners and you'll understand that this performance (like many others) is just an extension of an instantly dis-likable character being performed by an 'actor' hitting his marks.>

<Side B-bone>

Nice one! I always forget that music used to come in tiny discs with A and B sides.

<McLovin> I'm afraid I don't even know which films or stars have been nominated for the OSCARS, which I don't normally pay much attention to.

I did enjoy your yearly OSCAR feature here at cg.com though. I miss all of your special features. I'm glad you still do the MONKEY RANKER PREDICTIONS with the <Honorable Member from Ohio>.

That said, here is a list of GROUCHES that I would vote for:

(audiovisual aid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1S...)

<BEST FILM>: Birdman

<BEST ACTOR>: Adam Green, playing himself in the Indie Horror masterpiece "Digging in the Marrow."

<BEST ACTRESS>: Shailene Woodley in "Divergent."

<BEST DIRECTOR>: Adam Green for "Digging in the Marrow."

<BEST SCREAMPLAY> Adam Green for "Digging in the Marrow."

<BEST MUSICAL SCORE> Michael Lira for "Wyrmwood." The entire score of this most excellent film consists mainly of shrieking zombies. Best score since Rob Zombie's soundtrack for his "Lords of Salem."

Are there any examples of Beatles B-sides that became more famous than the A-sides?> That's a good question Jess. I know the Beatles released double A side tiny discs... ; P

<Niels>

I'm a big <Jake Guggenheim> fan, so I was most intrigued by the points you raise about his "method acting."

I hadn't considered that before, but I do see merit to the criticism you mention. I agree completely that <Guggenheim> seems more natural in <Zodiac>. I imagine him as a "nice guy" in real life, though absent of any real knowledge, this could be wholly wrong.

His method acting in <Nightcrawler> does seem stilted in comparison to <Zodiac>, but I have to admit that <Nightcrawler> is an uncommonly effective horror film.

It's not one that I would watch again though.

You know the seeds of "<Guggenheim> the obssessive stalker" are already firmly planted in <Zodiac> eh?

And yet he pulls off this characterization much, much more successfully in <Zodiac> than he does in <Nightcrawler>.

<gbone>

I haven't looked yet, but I'm guessing it's "I am the Walrus"?

Just an observation from Nightcrawler, which was my first real "Whaaat?!" moment from the movie, came when I noticed that his (JG) hair and dark-eye sleep deprived makeup were exactly the same in two different scenes, quite some time apart, showing obviously that those scenes were shot in sequence / at the same day. His hair and make-up were identical as in copy identical.

This I see as neglicent and perhaps amateurish, mainly from the director and responsible crew, while I realize that that is how things go when a film is being shot, and why I have a lot of respect for actors who in fact can play scenes from different points in time, arch of character, and pull it off so convincingly, while the scenes are filmed at the same day!

Just from a practical, filming set location, point of view, it seems a must for actors to be able to shift character by means of Method Acting, as per Stanislavski and Strasberg.

Shailene Woodley is one of my favorite actors as well, because of that ability, as she showed stunningly in < The Descendants >, but to her credit she combined method acting with a remarkable in-the-now alertness while on the set with her counterparts. Shailene is really good.

I mean exceptional.

Guggenheim is of course also dependent on the material he is given, so blasting an actor without taking all these a/de-bilitating factors into account would be very unfair.

<Niels> Raise a glass for <Shailene>!

Photo of Shailene at Comic Con: http://cdn04.cdn.justjared.com/wp-c...

For me, her most natural and illuminating performance was in the charming, and poignant, "The Spectacular Now."

I also loved her in "Bird in a White Blizzard."

Actually I'm a fan, which might mean I like her in anything.

<Rayoflight> Thanks.

<Ohio> Thanks for that relaxing country-style music. I never heard of England Dan & John Ford Coley before.